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Reminder: Lake sturgeon are protected under state laws

Anglers reminded that lake sturgeon are protected under state laws

Lake sturgeon are protected by legislation in both New York State and Vermont and anglers’ help is needed to protect the endangered species by practicing responsible angling and by reporting catch information.

 

lake sturgeon are protected

 

“Lake sturgeon, which are listed as an endangered species by the State of Vermont, are fully protected and all sturgeon caught by anglers need to be released immediately. Harvesting a lake sturgeon would result in the loss of an angler’s fish and wildlife licenses in Vermont and most other states for up to three years. It would also come with a $2,000 fee, paid as restitution to the state’s fish and wildlife fund, as well as a $722 fine for the offense itself.”  ~ Chet MacKenzie, fisheries biologist, Vermont Fish & Wildlife. 

Lake Sturgeon Facts

Also known as rock sturgeon, reddy sturgeon, or common sturgeon, the lake sturgeon is the region’s largest completely freshwater fish. A mature adult can measure between three and five feet in length and weigh up to 80 pounds, but can occasionally grow as large as 7+ feet and weigh 300 or more pounds. The largest on record in North America weighed over 300 pounds, and the oldest was 154 years old.

lake sturgeon are protected speciesThe body coloration changes with age. An adult lake sturgeon is a uniform dull grey color while younger sturgeon are brownish grey with clear green on the lower parts of the head and body. They have sharp, cone-shaped mouths with four smooth barbels on the underside. The mouth is wide and there are two smooth lobes on the lower lip.

 

Lake Sturgeon Habitat

Lake sturgeon, which in Vermont are only found in Lake Champlain and the lower sections of the Winooski, Lamoille and Missisquoi rivers and Otter Creek, are a unique, ancient form of fish that were first given complete protection by Vermont law in 1967. Lake Champlain has the only lake sturgeon population in New England. New York lake sturgeon have been collected in the St. Lawrence River, Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, the Niagara River, Cayuga Lake, the Seneca and Cayuga canals, and in the Grasse, Oswego, and Oswegatchie rivers, as well as Lake Champlain.

Historically the fish were more common in Lake Champlain, but declined because of over-fishing and loss of spawning habitat caused by dam construction.

 

Lake Sturgeon Restoration

Anglers are also encouraged to help with the Lake Champlain sturgeon restoration effort by minimizing injuries to any accidentally caught sturgeon.

“If by chance an angler catches a sturgeon, we ask that they leave the sturgeon in the water as much as possible and remove the hook if the fish is hooked in the mouth, but cut the line and leave the hook in place if the hook is swallowed. If possible, sturgeon should not be removed from the water. Anglers can also help by choosing to change fishing locations or using a different bait in the event that they catch multiple sturgeon in a particular area,”  said MacKenzie. 

 

lake sturgeon are protected under state laws

lake sturgeon are protected under state laws

Vermont Fish & Wildlife urges anglers to help population recovery efforts by reporting any sturgeon they catch to the Department at 802-878-1564, or by contacting their local fish and game warden or district office. Information obtained about sturgeon catches can be valuable to the Department’s sampling efforts and to monitoring the trend in sturgeon abundance over time.

Anglers and members of the public are also asked to report illegal sturgeon harvest to law enforcement immediately by calling their local warden, a state police dispatch center or Operation Game Thief at 1-800-752-5378.

To learn more about Vermont’s fisheries programs, fishing regulations or to purchase a fishing license, visit www.vtfishandwildlife.com

 

More About Lake Sturgeon:

A Dinosaur Among Us- The Lake Sturgeon

Lake Sturgeon Thunder

Coast Guard Seeks Help Finding Prank Callers

uscg 1The Coast Guard is trying to determine the source of calls broadcast over marine emergency channels that proved to be false alarms. Using these channels is like dialing 911 on the water,

The Coast Guard wants to identify the caller or callers to ensure safety on Lake Champlain and other waterways, as well as to ensure the emergency system is not being abused.

During the last two weeks of May Lake Champlain the Coast Guard station in Burlington, Vermont, received radio broadcasts of:

  • A claim that the caller’s boat was taking on water and that the boater saw a great white shark in Lake Champlain’s fresh waters.
  • “Mayday, mayday, mayday”
  • “Mayday, mayday. Iceberg straight ahead… two crazy people on the bow, kissing,”

 

The Coast Guard said there is a serious punishment to match the crime of misusing emergency channels. A conviction comes with the potential of prison time and hefty fines, plus the cost of the unnecessary search in some cases.

“If we’re responding to a false claim of distress at the southern end of the lake and there’s an actual distress on the northern end, we’d have to divert and call in another crew. And it could cost someone’s life because we’re searching for someone who’s not there or in actual distress.” ~ Coast Guard Machinery Technician Third Class, Michael Knight

Knight pointed out the Coast Guard must handle even suspicious calls as if they are real. “It’s not a joke, it’s a crime,” he said. Knight also suggested parents watch their children playing with radios on boats, reminding them that emergency frequencies are not for fun.

150419 Coast Guard Station Burlington Vermont assist Burlington Fire Dept , rescue injured hikers-S

U. S. Coast Guard crew stationed in  Burlington Vermont assist the Burlington Fire Dept , with the rescue injured hikers last month

Anyone who knows more about the calls is asked to call the Coast Guard’s northern New England sector at 207-767-0303.

Other Lake Champlain News:

 

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Incredible Lake Champlain Sunset from Grand Isle, Vermont

Lake Champlain Sunset from Grand Isle, Vermont

Check out this incredible Lake Champlain Sunset photo from Grand Isle, VT.

Photo was taken by Betsy Dall on May 31, 2015.

More Lake Champlain Sunsets:

 

EPA Focusing on Farm Phosphorus Runoff For Lake Champlain Cleanup

Farm Phosphorus Runoff Targeted in EPA Findings

Last year Vermont proposed a Lake Champlain water quality improvement plan, as required by the Clean Water Act, to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). But the EPA’s pollution models showed that the plan would not restore the water quality to the state standards in either the South Lake and Missisquoi Bay watersheds.

 

“Those segments of the lake will require significant reductions,” ~ Dave Deegan, from EPA’s New England Regional Office.

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Blue green algae blooms are caused by nutrients dumped into waterways by farm phosphorus runoff

 

Fertilizer runoff from farms will be targeted in these areas, state officials say. In some areas where agriculture accounts for most of the phosphorus flowing into lake, farmers will have to exceed current legal obligations to reduce runoff and erosion from their farms.

 

“Our presence is going to be increased. The actions on the part of farmers will be amplified,” ~ Chuck Ross, Vermont Agriculture Secretary

 

Vermont’s New Water Quality Bill

Vermont’s new Water Quality Bill calls for funding 8 new positions at the Agency of Agriculture, this year. According to Vermont Agriculture Secretary, Chuck Ross the agency will travel to these watersheds this summer to educate farmers about the legally required practices to prevent pollution.

Runoff from Farm fields

Unprotected farm fields yield topsoil as well as farm phosphorus runoff and other potential pollutants when heavy rains occur.

When those new efforts are not enough, he said the state will ask farmers to implement other measures that could include cover cropping, planting wider buffers between waterways, rotating different crops or taking land out of production. Ross said he expects some might choose to sell their farms instead of making the required changes.

But he added that the practices would be unique to each farm and targeted to those areas where they can improve water quality.

 

Farmers will have financial support this year for water quality protection projects. Last year the state received more than $60 million in U.S. Department of Agriculture grants over five years for conservation projects to prevent soil erosion and fertilizer runoff. Ross said there is also state and federal money available to help farmer put land into conservation and transition from one type of farming to another.

Vermont will offer a new plan designed to help curb phosphorus runoff from farms in these most polluted sections of Lake Champlain. The state hopes to provide the EPA with an updated plan in the next two weeks, according to David Mears, Vermont commissioner for the Department of Environmental Conservation.

 

Will The New Measures Meet the EPA Standards?

The EPA will review that updated plan before it issues a total maximum daily load value (TMDL) for public review and comment. A TMDL is the maximum amount of a pollutant a body of water can accept and still meet quality standards. The EPA also intends to work with Vermont and review the newly passed Water Quality Bill before issuing the TMDL value.

The Water Quality Bill sets a timeline for the agency to propose new rules to protect water quality. If signed into law, the agency would:

  • by July 2016 set standards including mandatory cover cropping, exclusion of livestock from waterways and requirement that manure spreaders be certified.
  • by July 2017 require that small farms be certified for compliance with water quality laws.

According to the EPA, the new legislation, in addition to other initiatives that state agencies are working on, create additional measures to reduce phosphorus and build a ‘sturdy foundation’ for restoring water quality in Lake Champlain.

 

More Lake Champlain News: