Spring Thoughts - the Spawning

Yesterday, the application for volunteers for Wisconsin's Department of Natural Resources sturgeon guard program arrived via e-mail.  It is an early sign of spring.

We sign up for three night guard dates in order of preference.  Ordinarily, we would pick the earliest date possible, starting on April 15.  However, the annual Midwest Crane Count is on Saturday, April 16th.  I plan on doing that, but it requires me to be on site at 5:00 a.m. to listen to the big birds' warning and mating calls and mark them down on a clipboard.  That means guarding our big ugly fish the night before is out.  I direct the Methodist church choir.  Palm Sunday is April 17, and I have to be wide awake for that.  No night guard for me the night of the 16th.

We are signing up for Sunday night, the 17th, followed by the 18th and 19th.  Last year, however, we were called in early, to guard on the 12th.  The sturgeon don't have calendars and start spawning when the water temperature is right.  Early spring, early spawn.

This is the set up:

We arrive at the sturgeon camp near Shiocton around 5:30 pm and sit down to a feast provided by the DNR.  Next we are given our official hats marked "Sturgeon Patrol".  Each year there's a new hat in a new color.  Gary has them hanging in a row above his computer.  I think there are about twelve now.  Finally, we are assigned our place at a rock pile along the Wolf River by the "sturgeon general".   We always beg for the most isolated spots and usually are granted our wish.   We pack a bag lunch from the buffet the DNR provides.  That means fresh fruit, sandwiches, candy bars, chips, and soft drinks or bottled water.

We arrive at our rock pile at 6:00 pm and tell the previous guards they can leave.

Then, as I often describe it, we do absolutely nothing for 12 hours and feel virtuous about it.  We sit on lawn chairs, watch the sun set on the river, chat and read.  Occasionally, we walk up and down the river bank with flashlights to watch our giants splash in a breeding frenzy.  If it is cold, as it often is, we wrap ourselves in sleeping bags as we sit.  Gary makes hot chocolate on the campstove.

The females are much bigger, sometimes six feet long.  They are known to live over a hundred years.   They lay their eggs on the rocks, with the males fighting to fertilize them.  Like males everywhere they tend to overdo mating.  Some have even been known to dash their heads in on the rocks.  I always tell Gary it reminds me of men in bars.

From time to time, one of us takes a nap in the bed in the back of Gary's van. The DNR wardens check in with us a couple of times a night.  

We watch the sunrise on the river.  At 6:00 am, our replacements show up.  We say "see you next year" to the big ladies and gentlemen in the river and we are off to the sturgeon camp for a big breakfast.

It is our first camping trip of the season.  We treasure it, knowing it is just the beginning of a wonderful summer.  Plus, we are saving our beloved giants for future generations.