Jason Arndt, jarndt@shawanoleader.com
Sturgeon are not only ancient marvels of biological science, they also are a species that must be protected.
The Department of Natural Resources has created an organization to ensure they are.
The Sturgeon Guard, created by the Department of Natural Resources in the middle of the 1970s and opened to the general public in 1988, recruits volunteers to man popular sites to protect the sturgeon during their annual spawning season.
The DNR created the program to reduce the illegal harvesting of sturgeon, which includes poaching eggs for caviar, and increase awareness of the Wolf River ecosystem.
When the sturgeon are spawning along the rocky shoreline of the Wolf River, they are fairly oblivious to nearby human activity and are very susceptible to illegal harvest, according to the DNR.
“We are supposed to keep the people from touching the fish, and 99 percent of the time they are real good about it,” said Sturgeon Guard member Warren Schultz, of Green Bay, at the Shawano dam. “But at times you see people out on the rocks. We try to tell them to come up and most of them do.”
Schultz, 70, has been a member of the Guard for four years and was dispatched to the Shawano dam on the Wolf River for a 12-hour shift for the first time Thursday.
“We were at Shiocton a few weeks ago and Manawa a few days before,” Schultz said. “I enjoy coming up here to protect the sturgeon. … It is a lot more active here than in any other spot where I have been earlier.”
Schultz decided to volunteer for the Guard due to his interest in the outdoors and desire to help conserve the sturgeon population. He said the group is well-organized.
“There is a 12-hour shift you volunteer for and the DNR warden sets up the schedule. Got an email from her saying they needed help here due to the water temperatures changing,” Schultz said.
Guards are usually scheduled from April 15 through May 5. Spawning generally occurs over a seven- to 10-day period within that time window.
Debbie Wolf, of Bonduel, was at the Shawano dam for the second day in a row Friday. She appreciates the Guard’s role.
“It’s a good thing, because otherwise you would have people taking them improperly. They are very delicate fish and are important to our area,” Wolf said.
Wolf said she was amazed the fish were still active on a cold and windy Friday evening.
“It was just amazing that they were on the rocks and were spawning (Thursday), but today is a little colder,” Wolf said.
For information about Sturgeon Guard, call 920-303-5444.