DNR releases sturgeon season report

OSHKOSH - Three rare white sturgeon speared on the same day, a record number of sturgeon spearers on Lake Winnebago, the largest sturgeon ever speared by a woman and the thickest ice in 13 years were some of the highlights of the 2009 sturgeon spearing season.

According to a Department of Natural Resources postseason report, a record 5,958 shanties sat on Lake Winnebago on opening day, a record for sturgeon spearing on the lake. There were 537 shanties on upriver lakes Butte des Morts, Winneconne and Poygan.

Of the 1,510 fish speared in 2009, the largest was taken on the first day of the season, Feb. 14. Amy Van Beek of Menasha speared a 168.8-pound, 80.8-inch female on Lake Poygan. The fish was the fourth heaviest and sixth longest sturgeon ever speared on the Lake Winnebago system, and was also the largest speared by a woman.

The 2009 season also saw a rarity: three "white" sturgeon were speared on the same day. The fish were registered on Feb. 17. According to the DNR, about one in 10,000 sturgeon is "white," because of light pigmentation.

Cold weather in January produced 30 inches of ice – the thickest since 1996; however, rain in the two weeks leading up to the season caused runoff, leading to patchy water clarity.

For final numbers from the 2009 sturgeon spearing season, click the links below.

Sturgeon statistics

Sturgeon registered by spearer's home county