The Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians’ Fisheries Enhancement Facility is hosting a Nmé Celebration at the Wolverine Village Park on August 27th 2022 at 1:00pm. This is a wonderful family event, where we can celebrate the return of this magnificent fish to the Sturgeon River. Lunch and refreshments are provided. Attendees will get a chance to release about 200 fish and send them off with kind wishes as the fish begin their long journey.

The LTBB FEF has been working in cooperation with Michigan State University and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to restore the Lake Sturgeon population in Burt Lake. Since 2013, the LTBB FEF has released 5,953 fingerling sturgeon into the Burt Lake system. Of the 5,953 fingerlings, 4,567 have been stocked in the Sturgeon River, at or upstream of Wolverine in hopes to improve their chances of imprinting and returning to the river when they mature.

In 2022, staff are hopeful to release ~700 fingerlings into the Sturgeon River. All hopes are that these fingerlings will reside in the river for the next 2-3 years, before “flushing” out into Burt Lake. These Lake Sturgeon are very long lived, and may possibly live more than 100 years. This long lifecycle also means that sturgeon do not mature until they are 15-20 years of age. In turn, staff expect the fish being released this year to possibly return to the river in 2037-2042!

Nme Celebration Handout

Google Maps Link: https://goo.gl/maps/AJKBdeZgWWgqwCQM7

GPS Location: (45.272743, -84.601348)

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