Lake sturgeon stocking festivals are coming to Cleveland on Sept. 19 and Toledo on Oct. 10. An autumn lake sturgeon release is also planned, apparently without fanfare, in the Scioto River.
Hope springs eternal, 18th-century poet Alexander Pope observed in his “An Essay on Man.” Pope didn’t pen verse about sturgeon, but he did mention them. Of course, that was at a time when, unlike now, there was no reason to doubt their future existence.
Currently, the fish is listed as endangered in Ohio. No record exists for lake sturgeon hooked in the state because targeting them is prohibited. Keeping one accidentally caught is likewise taboo…