Volunteer Andy Pavelek and STEP student Chris Olds, Jordan River Hatchery, hoist a lake sturgeon during a survey on the St Mary's River under direction of the Alpena FRO - FWS photo

In June, STEP student Chris Olds and hatchery volunteer Andrew Pavelek, Jordan River NFH, traveled to Sault Sainte Marie to help Alpena FRO Biologist Scott Koproski and STEP Student Meghan Kline with their Lake Sturgeon assessment project in the St. Mary’s River. 

Olds and Pavelek worked for two days setting and pulling set lines, and collecting data.  After all the lines where pulled reset, they began tracking the previously caught lake sturgeon. Any sturgeon caught with a length over 50 inches received a tracking unit that was surgically implanted, allowing Kline to track the daily movements of individual fish.  

Seven fish where captured in the two-day period.  Two of the seven sturgeon met the 50 inch criteria, so tracking units were implanted.  On the last day, Pavelek pulled up the first female sturgeon of the year. Ten Lake sturgeon had been captured previously and all of those were males.