OSHKOSH -- Sturgeon spearers registered 18 fish Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012 on Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources officials said.The number pushed the final, 16-day total to 566 on the system.
The big fish on the final day was a 114.6-pound, 71.0-inch, F4 female speared by David Ehlke of Oshkosh registered at Jerry's Bar. Another big fish was the 76.3-pound, 66.2-inch, F2 female speared by Shelby Derr of Oshkosh, registered at Wendt's.
But for Ron Bruch, Upper Fox-Wolf Fisheries Work Unit Supervisor for the DNR, the season remains a work in progress.
"The 2012 sturgeon spearing season is finally over on Lake Winnebago, all the fish are in, we are already starting to enter data and process numbers, but the season in a variety of ways continues on for many spearers. Not in their shacks peering down their spearing holes, but in the myriad things that happen once the official clock runs out on a season," Bruch said in an email. "Spearers that haven?t done so already will be getting their shacks off the lake.
"By law all shanties/shelters must be removed from the ice (for all inland waters south of Hwy 64) by the first Sunday following March 1, this year Sunday March 4. Spearers will also be cleaning up their spears, decoys and other gear, and packing it all away in wait for the 2013 season (you can start purchasing your 2013 Winnebago spearing licenses or Upriver Lakes applications in a few weeks by the end of March)."
Bruch said that despite the low overall number of fish caught, the season's safety record made it a successful run.
"Overall my first thoughts about the season include being thankful we had a safe season. Winnebago sturgeon spearers, as I?ve said many times, are as good as anyone in the world at reading ice and traveling on it safely," said Bruch, who noted that a final wrap-up report should be completed in three or four weeks. "My thoughts also include how fortunate we all are to have this great sturgeon resource that we all have had a hand in getting to where it is today, and that we can look forward to many more spearing seasons because of our efforts.
"Finally, despite less than optimal conditions due to marginal water clarity and ice, spearers still had a great time, local establishments hopefully had successful seasons, we saw some very nice fish (36 fish or 6.3 percent of the total 566 fish harvested were 100 pounds or larger), and we all demonstrated once again how vibrant and colorful our Wisconsin sturgeon culture is." Bruch said memories of the season will stick with him.
"The stories from this year will live on beyond the close of the actual season today. They will be told and re-told through the coming years in season de-briefings, sturgeon banquets, and taverns around the lake," Bruch said. "What a fish; what a place; can?t wait ?til next year!"
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