WHITE AND MICHIPICOTEN LAKE STURGEON ASSESSMENTS

Written by Anishinabek-Ontario Fisheries Resource Centre on 21 May 2012

Michael Twance, Fisheries Technician A-OFRC and Pic River First Nation community member, with a Lake Sturgeon from the White River 2011. Submitted photo

The 2012 field season should be an exciting one for the Anishinabek/Ontario Fisheries Resource Centre (A/OFRC) and its Lake Sturgeon research initiative in Northeastern Lake Superior! In the White River, the A/OFRC will continue to undertake a Lake Sturgeon radio telemetry project in partnership with Pic River First Nation, Pic Mobert First Nation, Parks Canada, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada. The project will continue to track the movement patterns and habitat utilization of 88 Lake Sturgeon in the White and Pic Rivers, while focusing more effort on spawning assessments to confirm that natural recruitment is occurring within the White River. These spawning assessments will combine gill nets, egg mats, and drift nets to collect spawning Lake Sturgeon adults, eggs, and larvae in the White River. Jenna MacLaurin, a former fisheries intern with the A/OFRC, and Michael Twance of Pic River First Nation will be leading this research with assistance from Andrew Ecclestone, a fisheries biologist with the A/OFRC. Once completed the spawning assessments, this crew will set nets in the Prairie, Little Pic, and Pukaskwa Rivers to determine if Lake Sturgeon reside in these tributaries of Lake Superior.

Jenna MacLaurin, Fisheries Intern A-OFRC and Fort William First Nation community member, with Lake Sturgeon from the Pic River, 2010. Submitted photo

In addition to the White River Lake Sturgeon project, the A/OFRC will also be undertaking a Lake Sturgeon research project on the Michipicoten River in partnership with Michipicoten First Nation, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Brookfield Renewable Power, the Municipality of Wawa, and Buck’s Marina. The Michipicoten River has several hydroelectric generating stations that are operated by Brookfield Renewable Power. The potential impact of these generating stations on Lake Sturgeon is virtually unknown and therefore this project aims to identify any harmful impacts that these facilities may have on Lake Sturgeon recruitment. Michipicoten First Nation and the A/OFRC will also be conducting a survey with elders and anglers from Michipicoten First Nation to identify and compile traditional ecological knowledge about Lake Sturgeon, and more broadly, the Michipicoten River. This project will also contain radio telemetry component, to assess the movements and habitat utilization of Lake Sturgeon in the Michipicoten River. This project has been made possible through financial contributions from the Canada-Ontario Agreement Respecting the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem and is scheduled to occur over the next three years.

Andrew Eccleston, Fisheries Biologist A-OFRC, with a Lake Sturgeon from the White River, 2011. Submitted photo

Regular updates on these projects will be available through the A/OFRC’s website (www.aofrc.org) and Facebook page (Anishinabek/Ontario Fisheries Resource Centre). For more information on these exciting projects, including volunteer opportunities, or to report a tagged Lake Sturgeon, please contact: