Lake and shovelnose sturgeon
Fishes of Wisconsin
Sturgeon are living fossils, appearing first about 136 million years ago when the dinosaurs still roamed the earth. They have retained many primitive characteristics that have been lost or modified in other modern-day fishes.
Nineteenth-century commercial fishermen considered them a nuisance for tearing their nets, and they slaughtered them, tossing them on shore to rot. Twentieth-century fishermen valued their flesh and eggs and harvested them by the ton. Where will their place in the 21st century reside?
Two species of sturgeon inhabit Wisconsin waters, the lake sturgeon and shovelnose sturgeon.