Sturgeon rearing volunteer needed

All,

I would like to announce that the Riveredge Nature Center in Newburg, WI and the Wisconsin DNR need one more sturgeon volunteer for their sturgeon rearing project that runs now through October. I am currently part of this project and am finding it very enjoyable and rewarding! This could be a great opportunity for a student looking to "boost" their resume.

What is the sturgeon rearing project?
This is an exciting opportunity to help bring back lake sturgeon to the Milwaukee River.

History of the project:
Lake sturgeon were once abundant in Lake Michigan, with spawning populations in many of its tributaries. They disappeared from the Milwaukee River over 100 years ago due to habitat loss, over fishing, pollution, and the installation of dams. They are the oldest and largest native fish to the lakes and are important to the Great Lakes ecosystem.

Goal of the Project:
Over the next 25 years, Riveredge volunteers will help to raise approximately 1,000 lake sturgeon per year, totaling roughly 25,000 fish by 2031.

The sturgeon are raised in a streamside rearing facility where water from the Milwaukee River is circulated through rearing tanks. This allows the fish to imprint on the water as they grow. Once the sturgeon are released, they have a better chance of returning to the river to spawn when they are mature.

Volunteer Job Description:
Volunteers are needed to make this program a success. A variety of daily tasks need to be performed to maximize the sturgeon’s chances of survival. Volunteers track the number of sturgeon, provide feedings, perform water quality tests and monitor the daily operations of the streamside rearing facility.

Volunteers are asked to make a two to three hour, one-day a week commitment. One volunteer is needed for Saturdays only. Training sessions are scheduled once per month from April through July but can be arranged on a one-on-one basis if needed.

Sturgeon Monitor - Volunteer Job Description:
Life offers few opportunities to change history, and rectify mistakes of the past. Volunteer for the Lake Sturgeon Restoration project and do just that. Join a group of dedicated volunteers feeding the fish, maintaining the tanks, monitoring systems and verifying water quality. Volunteers commit to one day a week (Saturday) after being trained and become part of one of the inspiring projects at Riveredge.
Qualifications of Volunteer: Able to work independently; very dependable and trustworthy.
This position is appropriate for: Adult
Minimum Age: 18
Location of Volunteer Job: Riveredge Nature Center, 4458 West Hawthorne Drive, PO Box 26, Newburg, WI 53060
Time Commitment requested: Flexible, usually 9:00am to noon.
Number needed: 1
Day Volunteer Is Needed: Saturday
Hours: Flexible
Volunteer position is for: Ongoing, now through October
Is training provided? Yes (Required)
Will there be supervision? Yes
Benefits you provide: Be a part of History!


Contact Pat Fox Schindler if interested at (262) 375-2715, volunteers@riveredge.us

**Additionally, at the end of the rearing project, there is a "release" party in Theinsville, WI. In previous years, hundreds of people have attended!

Brian

I know I am gloming onto your post, but it's a short observation.

15 years ago, I was feeding 12 baby half-inch sturgeon for a zoo friend every day for a week. I over-rode my fish husbandry instincts and feed live baby brine shrimp heavier than I ever would. After the week, there were only 8 left.

Small sturgeon grow so fast, that instead of getting stunted in size, the baby sturgeon starve to death.

Phil,

That's an interesting observation. We are currently feeding the sturgeon brine shrimp nauplii and shaved bloodworms. The nauplii are placed in feeding "hoppers" that release a set amount of solution, and nauplii, to the sturgeon tanks multiple times throughout the day. The shaved bloodworms are put on "belt feeders" and slowly release the bloodworms to the fish throughout the day. The system seems to be working well. We're running 1,500 fish between 4 tanks. Oh, we also have a river water flow-through system to help keep the water clean. It's really a top-notch setup!

Brian

Brian J. Torreano - Owner
BTDarters
American Native Fish for
your aquarium...and more!
Web: http://www.btdarters.com
Email: bt@btdarters.com
Phone: (262) 268-7489

Edit: Added superfluous signature line.

Edited by BTDarters, 01 July 2009 - 02:20 AM.

Phil,

That's an interesting observation. We are currently feeding the sturgeon brine shrimp nauplii and shaved bloodworms. The nauplii are placed in feeding "hoppers" that release a set amount of solution, and nauplii, to the sturgeon tanks multiple times throughout the day. The shaved bloodworms are put on "belt feeders" and slowly release the bloodworms to the fish throughout the day. The system seems to be working well. We're running 1,500 fish between 4 tanks. Oh, we also have a river water flow-through system to help keep the water clean. It's really a top-notch setup!

Sounds great.

Depending on how old the brine shrimp are, have you considered feeding the brine shrimp in the hopper? The sturgeon would get more nutrition from gut-loaded brine shrimp.

We hatch the nauplii and feed the sturgeon with them all within 24 hours. Have the nauplii completed their first instar and able to take food in this period?

Brian

Brian J. Torreano - Owner
BTDarters
American Native Fish for
your aquarium...and more!
Web: http://www.btdarters.com
Email: bt@btdarters.com
Phone: (262) 268-7489

Here are some pictures of the baby sturgeon, taken last week Thursday.






This is the sturgeon rearing trailer.

Hope you've enjoyed the pics!

Brian

Brian J. Torreano - Owner
BTDarters
American Native Fish for
your aquarium...and more!
Web: http://www.btdarters.com
Email: bt@btdarters.com
Phone: (262) 268-7489

We hatch the nauplii and feed the sturgeon with them all within 24 hours. Have the nauplii completed their first instar and able to take food in this period?

No.
Even at temperature in the 80's, I would still consider 24 hours newly hatched.
(But I haven't read-up on brine shrimp. Seventeen years of daily success, why change?)

Do you have more photos of the sturgeon rearing trailer? I would like to know more about it.

Tom,

Sure. Here are some more photos.


Waving is Ralph, one of the other members of the Thursday crew. You can see the sturgeon raceways on the right and left front of the picture. There are 4 of them. I'm not sure how many gallons are in each. They are about halfway full of river water, which runs through the tanks at about 4 gallons per minute. The brine shrimp hoppers are in the middle right and left of the picture. They hold 5 quarts of shrimp nauplii each. The shrimp are dispersed in 90-minute intervals throughout the day. Also in the picture, you can see the belt feeders. These are the green-topped black boxes on the 2 by 4s. These dispense 100 grams of bloodworms into each tank gradually throughout the day.


Here's Ralph putting brine shrimp eggs into one of the shrimp hatcheries. In this picture the hatchery is located in the cupboard in the trailer. We have since moved the hatchery into a nearby shed and are using an additional hatchery as well. In total, we are hatching 4 gallons of nauplii per day.


Here's the whole Thursday crew outside of the trailer. From left to right, Heather, myself, and Ralph.


This is a picture I took of the Kame (boot) building and the path down to the river. As you can see, the area around the trailer is really picturesque!


Here's a closeup of one of the brine shrimp hoppers. You can see the solenoids on the output tubes. This photo was taken when we were dispensing 10 quarts per day from this one hopper.


A final shot of the trailer.

Hope you've enjoyed!

Brian

Brian J. Torreano - Owner
BTDarters
American Native Fish for
your aquarium...and more!
Web: http://www.btdarters.com
Email: bt@btdarters.com
Phone: (262) 268-7489

I'm definitely enjoying this thread! I hope you'll post more pictures as the sturgeon grow, I'd like to see more.

No problem. If I have time tonight, I'll post the pictures I took of the fish today.

Brian

Brian J. Torreano - Owner
BTDarters
American Native Fish for
your aquarium...and more!
Web: http://www.btdarters.com
Email: bt@btdarters.com
Phone: (262) 268-7489

Here are the pictures taken on Thursday. If you compare them to the photos earlier in this thread, you can definitely see that they've grown. On to the pics!


Believe it or not, I took this picture before we cleaned the tanks! They must be eating everything in sight!


Happy little sturgeon!

Hope you've enjoyed the pics!

Brian

Brian J. Torreano - Owner
BTDarters
American Native Fish for
your aquarium...and more!
Web: http://www.btdarters.com
Email: bt@btdarters.com
Phone: (262) 268-7489

Any Updates?

Sure, here are some pics I took on the 16th. I think that in this set you will notice the largest growth of the fish to date. They really had seemed to grow alot from the previous week. We still need a Saturday volunteer if anyone can help. Anyways, here are the pics!





Brian

wow your sturgeon from previous years must be coming over here (southwest MI) our sturgeon population is growing fast I seen a 3 footer caught of the pier(St. Joseph River) this spring and heard of at least 20 other fish with most in the 4-5' range.

wow your sturgeon from previous years must be coming over here (southwest MI) our sturgeon population is growing fast I seen a 3 footer caught of the pier(St. Joseph River) this spring and heard of at least 20 other fish with most in the 4-5' range.

Neat setup you got there.

How large do Lake Sturgeon grow?

wow your sturgeon from previous years must be coming over here (southwest MI) our sturgeon population is growing fast I seen a 3 footer caught of the pier(St. Joseph River) this spring and heard of at least 20 other fish with most in the 4-5' range.

Neat setup you got there.

How large do Lake Sturgeon grow?

At the nature center, they tell the kids that the sturgeon can grow up to 8 feet long, but they can get larger!

Brian