A record of nearly 14-thousand people bought a license this year for the Sturgeon Spearing season that started today. And the numbers are in as far as what was produced on day one.
A total of 84 fish were caught on the Lake Winnebago system and seven of those were over 100 pounds. Another 151 fish were taken from the Upriver lakes. And the DNR says the anticipated size of the Sturgeon that will come in over the next couple weeks should be a plus for those spearing.
"On average they're just a little bit fatter than what we had last year. This year we had a larger gizzard hatch than we've had each of the last two years,” says Ryan Koenigs the DNR Sturgeon Biologist.
Despite record license sales in 2016, there's about 500 less shanties out on Lake Winnebago today compared to last years opener. The DNR says that is likely because of the late ice we got and possibly because of the lack of water clarity. It is anticipated at this point that the Lake Winnebago Spearing season could last for all 16-days.
