IMichigan’s Department of National Resources on Friday canceled the state’s lake sturgeon fishing season for the first time. Photo courtesy of State of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Because of unsafe ice, Michigan’s Department of National Resources on Friday canceled the state’s lake sturgeon fishing season for the first time.
The season that takes place on Black Lake in Cheboygan and Presque Isle counties was set to start on Saturday but state outdoor officials worried about marginal ice conditions because of a warmer-than-usual winter. Advertisement
“In addition to protecting the lake sturgeon population, the safety of anglers and staff is critically important,” Randy Claramunt, Michigan’s DNR fisheries chief said in a statement. “We encourage all anglers across Michigan to use extreme caution while on the ice, as we have been experiencing above-average temperatures.”
The DNR sets the harvest limit for each Black Lake sturgeon season and officials said they worried about tracking the numbers with the limited number of DNR personnel on the ice this season.
The fish are some of the oldest found in the Great Lakes region, and Michigan’s DNR has been working to strengthen their population after their numbers declined markedly after the 1800s.
