Augusta - Atlantic sturgeon and shortnose sturgeon are two of Maine’s twelve species of sea-run fish that divide their time between fresh and salt water. Atlantic sturgeon, which can grow to more than 13-feet long and live up to 60 years old, can be seen leaping in Maine’s large rivers and coastline in the summer months.
But these charismatic fish are listed as threatened (Gulf of Maine Atlantic sturgeon) and endangered (Shortnose sturgeon) under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
While research suggests that conditions for recovery for both Atlantic and Shortnose sturgeon are improving because of dam removals in historic habitat and legislation such as the Clean Water Act, many threats still exist. They include vessel strikes, habitat degradation, and unintentional harvest of sturgeon by fishermen targeting other species, known as bycatch.
Researchers at the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) need more information to better understand how sturgeon populations are doing, so a path toward recovery can be charted.
To accomplish this, Maine DMR and partners at the University of Maine (UMaine) School of Marine Science and the United States Geologic Survey’s Maine Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit (CRU) are undertaking a multi-faceted research initiative.
Funded by a $444,248 grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Species Recovery Grant Program, the initiative will identify research gaps, enhance data on nearshore threats such as vessel strikes, improve population abundance estimates, and engage the public in data gathering.
Currently biological and behavioral data on sturgeons are housed in separate databases managed by DMR, UMaine and CRU. Included are 15-years of data on over 200 sturgeons tagged by UMaine researchers and millions of detections of tagged sturgeons by acoustic receivers in the Penobscot River and Kennebec River watersheds.
The initiative will combine these datasets to enable a robust single platform for use by researchers and managers. “Integrating the data from acoustic monitors in our coastal rivers will support a better understanding of sturgeon populations, habitat use, and near shore movement,” said DMR Scientist Danielle Frechette, PhD, who is leading the project.
Future plans also call for collaboration among acoustic telemetry receiver operators in the Gulf of Maine (GOM) to coordinate data sharing among receiver operators including DMR, the US Geological Survey, the Navy, and other researchers.
In addition, researchers will capture and tag at least 20 individuals of each species per year for two years in the Kennebec and Penobscot Rivers. The tagged sturgeons will be detected by the existing array of receivers in Maine rivers and along the coast, building on the understanding of sturgeon movement in the GOM and coastal rivers.
The project will also include engagement of the public in conservation that includes citizen science and outreach to commercial and recreational fishermen to encourage reporting of sturgeon carcasses and bycatch.
The effort involved the 2024 launch by DMR of the Maine Sturgeon Sighting Reporter, a tool for community members to report sightings of both live and dead sturgeon. Outreach will also include a campaign to teach recreational anglers safe catch and release techniques.
DMR will also collaborate with the Penobscot Nation to develop an educational program aimed at tribal youth with the goal of reconnecting them with a species of historic importance to the tribe, and to encourage Penobscot youth to pursue a career in natural resources.
“This work will develop the research necessary to support recovery of Atlantic and Shortnose sturgeons and will provide an opportunity for community members to be part of that exciting process,” said Frechette.
A video of Atlantic Sturgeon in the Cobbosseeconttee Stream in Gardiner in 2023 can be viewed here.