The sturgeon ranged in weight from 11.5 ? 117 pounds. The La Crosse FHC is continuing long-term sturgeon diagnostic monitoring, and has done so for the past five years. The completed four years of tests have shown no sign of any disease or virus present in the Lake Winnebago-Wolf River System lake sturgeon, and their overall health is very good.

The La Crosse USFWS crew worked closely with a State of Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources fisheries crew at one of a number of state sturgeon spearing registration stations located around the big lake. The spearing harvest is closely monitored and regulated by DNR biologists. When the 'safe-harvest? level of adult female and male sturgeon is reached, notice is given that the annual spearing season will end after the next day of spearing. Because of ideal water clarity and ice conditions, the 'safe-harvest? was reached the first day of spearing, limiting the 2004 season to only two days.

The highlight of the first day's lake sturgeon harvest this year was the registration of many large fish (60-100 pounds), including a fish weighing in at 189 pounds and 80 inches in length. According to Ron Bruch, DNR fishery supervisor, this sturgeon was aged at 53 years, and was the largest sturgeon harvested from Lake Winnebago in 73 years of record-keeping. Bruch also said the spearing harvest this year totaled 1,854. The Lake Winnebago-Wolf River system probably holds the largest remaining lake sturgeon population in the world. With continued monitoring, research, and management cooperation by the Wisconsin DNR, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), tribes, and partners such as the ?Sturgeon For Tomorrow? group, the future for this ancient fish, here since the dinosaurs, looks positive indeed.