Lake sturgeon have been harvested by humans in the Moose River Basin for thousands of years. Lake sturgeon had both cultural and subsistence importance to Aboriginal peoples. All parts of the fish were used: the meat for food; the skin as a container to store oil; the isinglass which lines the swim bladder as a paint stabilizer; and the pointed bones along the back as arrow heads. Today, lake sturgeon remain culturally significant and continue to be a valued food source to Aboriginal people.
Initially, early settlers did not value lake sturgeon but soon learned about its various uses. Anglers and commercial fishers targeted lake sturgeon mainly for its popular smoked flesh. The oil was used in paint manufacturing and the isinglass from its swim bladder as a clarifying agent in beer and wine. Leather products were made from its skin and the eggs were used for caviar. By the early 1900s, such uses of lake sturgeon led to large increases in its harvest.
Historical harvest records are incomplete. From the limited data available, it’s clear annual harvests exceeded a river’s production of fish in some years (Figure 3). This means more fish were taken from a population than the population was able to produce.
Declining numbers of lake sturgeon resulted in the closing of the remaining commercial fisheries by the mid-1980s. Recreational angling for lake sturgeon is still common in the basin.
Figure 3. Estimated harvest of lake sturgeon from three sections of rivers in the Moose River Basin.
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Current state of the resource
