Iowa Fish Atlas

Native: Yes

State Rank: S1

ITIS Code: 161071          

National Rank:  N3N4

Global Rank: G3

Modeled By: Anna Loan-Wilsey

State Range:

The lake sturgeon has become rare in Iowa and is considered endangered (571 IAC 77.2(1) (2004)) as it has steadily decreased in abundance since 1900. The prime reason for its decline seems to be overharvest but others include pollution and dam construction, which fragments the lake sturgeon’s habitat and stifles migration (Pflieger 1997). In Iowa, the lake sturgeon is almost exclusively found in the Mississippi River (Harlan et al. 1987).  However, specimens were recently collected from the Des Moines and Maquoketa Rivers (Olson 2004), the first documented occurrences of this species in Iowa’s interior waters.

Habitat Affinities:

The lake sturgeon is a bottom dweller inhabiting the quiet waters of large rivers and lakes. It prefers shallow shoals in lakes and the deepest parts of large rivers (Eddy and Underhill 1974; Robison and Buchanan 1988). In the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, the lake sturgeon seeks firm, silt-free bottoms of sand, gravel and rock (Pflieger 1997). The lake sturgeon is known to migrate as far as 200km upstream to spawn while lake populations are non-migratory (Etnier and Starnes 1993). Populations of lake sturgeon are declining in most states from dam construction (Trautman 1981), commercial exploitation, pollution (Clay 1975; Etnier and Starnes 1993; Phillips et. al. 1982) or “deliberate elimination of a large nuisance fish by man” (Smith 1979).

Predictive Model(s):

Mississippi River Model:

The distribution is based upon existing collection records and professional review.

(("pool" >= 'S08' AND "pool" <= 'S10') OR ("pool" >= 'S13' AND "pool" <= 'S20'))

Overall Prediction:

(("pool" >= 'S08' AND "pool" <= 'S10') OR ("pool" >= 'S13' AND "pool" <= 'S20'))

Literature Cited:

Clay, W.M.  1975.  The fishes of Kentucky.  Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, Frankfort, Kentucky.  416 pp.

Eddy, S., and J.C. Underhill.  1974.  Northern fishes; with special reference to the upper Mississippi Valley.  University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota.  414 pp.

Endangered and threatened plant and animal species.  2004.  Iowa Administrative Code 

571: 77.2(1).

Etnier, D.A., and W.E. Starnes.  1993.  The fishes of Tennessee.  University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville, Tennessee.  681 pp.

Harlan, J.R., E.B. Speaker, and J. Mayhew.  1987.  Iowa fish and fishing. Iowa Conservation Commission, Des Moines, Iowa. 323pp.

Olson, J.R.  2004.  Personal Communication: professional review comments.  Water

Quality Bureau, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Des Moines, Iowa.

Pflieger, W.L.  1997.  The fishes of Missouri.  Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City, Missouri.  372 pp.

Phillips, G.L., W.D. Schmid, and J.C. Underhill.  1982.  Fishes of the Minnesota region.  University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota.  248 pp.

Robison, H.W., and T.M. Buchanan. 1988.  Fishes of Arkansas.  University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, Arkansas.  536 pp.

Smith, P.W.  1979.  The fishes of Illinois.  University of Illinois Press, Urbana, Illinois.  314 pp.

Trautman, M.B.  1981.  The fishes of Ohio.  Revised Edition.  Ohio State University Press in collaboration with the Ohio Sea Grant Program Center for Lake Erie Area Research,  Columbus, Ohio.  782 pp.

Data Sources:

Howell, D.  2003.  NAI database.  Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Des

Moines, Iowa.

Long Term Resource Monitoring Program.  2002.   Pool 13 database, 1990-2001.  Upper

Midwest Environmental Science Center, Bellevue, Iowa.

Meek, S.E.  1892.  Report upon the fishes of Iowa, based upon observations and

collections mad during 1889, 1890, 1891.  Bulletin of the United States Fish Commission 10(1890):217-248.

Nord, R.C.  1967.  A compendium of fishery information on the Upper Mississippi River.

Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, Rock Island, Illinois.

Olson, J.R.  2004.  Personal Communication: professional review comments.  Water

Quality Bureau, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Des Moines, Iowa.

UMRCC.  1953.  Revised species list- northern section of the river.  Pages 19-32 in

Proceedings of the Ninth Annual Meeting, Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, Rock Island, Illinois.

Additional References:

Anderson, E.R.  1987.  Lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) management and culture in Minnesota and Michigan. Pages 84 in C. H. Olver, editor.  Proceedings of a workshop on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens). Ontario Fisheries Technical Report Series No. 23.  99 pp.

Auer, N.A.  1999.  Lake sturgeon: a unique and imperiled species in the Great Lakes.  Pages 515-536 in W.W. Taylor and C.P. Ferreri, editors.  Great Lakes Fisheries Policy and Management: A Binational Perspective. Michigan State University Press, East Lansing, Michigan.

Baker, J.P.  1980.  The distribution, ecology and management of the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens Rafinesque) in Michigan.  Fisheries Research Report No. 1883, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Fisheries Division. 95 pp.

Becker, G.C.  1983.  Fishes of Wisconsin.  University of Wisconsin Press, Madison. 1052 pp.

Binkowski, F.P., and S.I. Doroshov, editors.  1985.  North American sturgeons: biology and aquaculture potential. Dr. W. Junk Publishers, Dordrecht, Netherlands. 163 pp.

Birstein, V.J., J.R. Waldman, and W.E. Bemis.  1997.  Sturgeon biodiversity and conservation.  Kluwer Academic Publishers, Boston.  Reprinted from Environmental Biology of Fishes 48(1-4).

Brousseau, C.S.  1987.  The lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) in Ontario. Pp. 2-9 in C. H. Olver, editor.   Proceedings of a workshop on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).  Ontario Fisheries Technical Report Series 23.  99pp.

Burr, B. M., and M.L. Warren, Jr.  1986.  A distributional atlas of Kentucky fishes.  Kentucky Nature Preserves Commission, Scientific and Technical Series No. 4., Frankfort, Kentucky.  398 pp.

Carlson, D.M., and W.L. Pflieger.  1981.  Abundance and life history of the lake, pallid, and shovelnose sturgeons in Missouri.  D-J Project SE-1-6, Job No. 1.

Cook, J.G., R.P. Lanka, J.L. Henszey, M.L. Neighbours, K.H. Dueholm, K.D. Kozie, and S.H. Anderson.  1987. Species abstracts for federal rare animals. Section 5, Appendix 2 in Literature reviews of rare species known to occur on National Park Service lands, Midwest region.  National Park Service, Midwest Regional Office, Omaha, Nebraska.

Cooper, E.L.  1983.  Fishes of Pennsylvania and the northeastern United States.  Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park, Pennsylvania. 243 pp.

Cross, F.B.  1967.  Handbook of fishes of Kansas.  University of Kansas Museum of Natural History Miscellaneous Publication  No. 45, Lawrence, Kansas.  357 pp.

Cross, F.B., and J.T. Collins.  1975.  Fishes in Kansas.  University of Kansas  Publications,  Public Education Series No. 3, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas.   189 pp.

Douglas, N.H.  1974.  Freshwater fishes of Louisiana.  Claitor’s Publishing Division, Sponsored by Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  443 pp.

Dumont, P., R. Fortin, G. Desjardins, and M. Bernard.  1987.  Biology and the exploitation of the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) in Quebec waters of the Saint-Laurent River. Pages 57-76 in C. H. Olver, editor.   Proceedings of a workshop on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).  Ontario Fisheries Technical Report Series 23.  99pp.

Evers, D.C.  1992.  A guide to Michigan's endangered wildlife.  University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, Michigan. viii + 103 pp.

Fortin, R., J.R. Mongeau, G.  Desjardins, and P. Dumont. 1993.  Movements and biological statistics of lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) populations from the St. Lawrence and Ottawa river systems, Quebec.  Canadian Journal of Zoology 71:638-650.

Gale, L.R., C.A. Purkette, D.F. Dickneite, and J.P. Fry.  1986. Reintroduction of lake sturgeon into Missouri.  Report submitted to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  26 pp.

Gelwicks, G.T.  1995.  Fish movement between the lower Missouri River and a managed floodplain wetland in Missouri.  Master’s thesis. University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri. 190 pp.

Graham, P.  1981.  Status of the white sturgeon in the Kootenai River.  Montana Department of fisheries and Wildlife Report, Kalispell, Montana.

Guenette, S., R. Fortin, and E. Rassart.  1993.  Mitochondrial DNA variation in lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) from the St. Lawrence River and James Bay drainage basins in Quebec, Canada.  Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 50:659-664.

Harkness, W.J.K.  1923.  The rate of growth and the food of the lake sturgeon [Acipenser rubicundus (LeSeuer)]. University of Toronto Student Biology Series 24.  Ontario Fisheries Research Laboratory, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 18:13-42.

Harkness, W.J.K., and J.R. Dymond.  1961.  The lake sturgeon. the history of its fishery and problems of conservation.  Ontario Department of Lands and Forests, Fish and Wildlife Branch.  121 pp.

Hart, M.L.  1987.  Considerations for the management of lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) commercial fisheries in Ontario.  Pages 85-90 in C. H. Olver, editor.  Proceedings of a workshop on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).  Ontario Fisheries Technical Report Series 23.  99pp.

Herkert, J.R., editor.  1992.  Endangered and threatened species of Illinois: status and distribution. Volume 2: Animals.  Illinois Endangered Species Protection Board.  142 pp.

Hill, T.D., and J.R. McClain.  1998.  Status of lake sturgeon in Michigan waters of Lake Huron, reported by commercial fishers, 1995-1997.  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-Alpena Fishery Resources Office, Alpena, Michigan.

Hocutt, C.H., and E.O. Wiley.  1986.  The zoogeography of North American freshwater fishes.  John Wiley and Sons, New York, New York.  865 p.

Hoffman, G.L.  1967.  Parasites of North American freshwater fishes.  University of California Press, Berkeley, California.  486 pp.

Hoffman, G.L., E.V. Raikova, and W.G. Yoder.  1974.  Polypodium sp. (Coelenterata) found in North American sturgeon.  Journal of Parasitology 60(3):548-50.

Houston, J. 1987.  Status of the lake sturgeon, Acipenser fulvescens, in Canada.  Canadian Field-Naturalist 101:171-185.

Kelly, G., editor.  1986.  Animal habitat relations handbook.  Missouri Department of Conservation and U.S.D.A. Forest Service, Jefferson City, Missouri.  293 pp.

Kreitman, G.  1987.  Personal communication to C. S. Brousseau.  The lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) in Ontario. Pages 2 - 9 in C. H. Olver, editor.  Proceedings of a workshop on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).  Ontario Fisheries Technical Report Ser. No 23. 99 pp.

Krieger, J., P.A. Fuerst, and T.M. Cavender.  2000.  Phylogenetic relationships of the North American sturgeons (Order Acipenseriformes) based on mitochondrial DNA sequences.  Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 16:64-72.

LaHaye, M., A. Branchaud, M. Gendron, R. Verdon, and R. Fortin.  1992.  Reproduction, early life history, and characteristics of the spawning grounds of the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) in Des Prairies and L'Assomption rivers, near Montreal, Quebec.  Canadian Journal of Zoology 70:1681-1689.

Lee, D.S., C.R. Gilbert, C.H. Hocutt, R.E. Jenkins, D.E. McAllister, and J.R. Stauffer, Jr.  1980.  Atlas of North American freshwater fishes.  North Carolina State Museum of Natural History, Raleigh, North Carolina.  867 pp.

MacKay, H.H. 1963.  Fishes of Ontario.  Ontario Department of Lands and Forests.  Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

MacRitchie, I.  1983.  Rationale and recommended sturgeon quotas for large rivers in the Cochrane District of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.  Cochrane District Miscellaneous Report, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Ontario, Canada. 14 pp.

Margolis, L., and J. R. Arthur.  1979.  Synopsis of the parasites of fishes in Canada.  Fish. Research Board of Canada Bulletin No. 199. 269 pp.

Mettee, M.F., P.E. O'Neil, and J.M. Pierson.  1996.  Fishes of Alabama and the Mobile Basin.  Oxmoor House, Birmingham, Alabama.  820 pp.

Mongeau, J.R., J. LeClere, and J. Brisebois.  1982.  La dynamique de la reconstritution des populations de l'esturgeon jaune Acipenser fulvescens du lac des Deux Montagnes, Province du Quebec, de la tourism, de la chasse et de la peche.  Technical Report 06-33, Wildlife Management Service, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Mosindy, T.  1987.  The lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) fishery of Lake of the Woods, Ontario. Pages 49-56 in C. H. Olver, editor.  Proceedings of a workshop on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).  Ontario Fisheries Technical Report Series 23. 99pp.

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York.  523 pp.

Nowak, A.M., and C. S. Jessop. 1987.  Biology and management of the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) in the Groundhog and Mattigami Rivers, Ontario. Pages 20-3 in C. H. Olver, editor.  Proceedings of a workship on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).  Ontario Fisheries Technical Report Series No. 23. 99 pp.

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Parks, N.B. 1978.  The Pacific Northwest commercial fishery for sturgeon.  Marine Fisheries Review. 40:17-20.

Payne, D.A. 1987.  Biology and population dynamics of the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) from the Frederick House, Abitibi and Matigami rivers, Ontario. Pages 10-19 in C. H. Olver, editor.  Proceedings of a workshop on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens). Ontario Fisheries Technology Report Series 23.  99pp.

Pflieger, W.L.  1971.  A distributional study of Missouri fishes.  University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natural History  20(3):225-570.

Pflieger, W.L.  1989a.  Aquatic community classification system for Missouri.  Missouri Department of Conservation.  Jefferson City, Missouri.  Aquatic Series No. 19. 70 pp. plus Supplement.

Pflieger, W.L.  1989b.  The stream resources of Missouri.  D-J Project - F-1-R-28.  Study S-20.  Missouri Department of Conservation, Columbia, Missouri.  

Priegel, G.R.  1973.  Lake sturgeon management on the Menominee River.  Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Technical Bulletin No. 67. 20 pp.

Priegel, G.R., and T.L. Wirth.  1971.  The lake sturgeon, its life history, ecology, and management.  Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Publication 240-270. 19 pp.

Priegel, G. R. and T. L. Wirth. 1975. Lake sturgeon harvest, growth, and recruitment in Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Technical Bulletin No. 83. 25 pp.

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Rusak, J.A., and T. Mosindy.  1997.  Seasonal movements of lake sturgeon in Lake of the Woods and the Rainy River, Ontario.  Canadian Journal of Zoology 74:383-395.

Sandilands, A.P.  1987.  Biology of the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) in the

Kenogami River, Ontario. Pages 33-46 in C. H. Olver, editor.  Proceedings of a workship on the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).  Ontario Fisheries Technical Report Series No. 23. Ontario, Canada.  99 pp.

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Threader, R.W., and C.S. Brousseau.  1983.  Biology and management of the lake sturgeon in the Moose River, Ontario.  Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.  Unpublished Research Report, Toronto.

Underhill, J.C.  1987.  Fishes. Pages 351-73 in B. Coffin and L. Pfannmuller, editors.  Minnesota's Endangered Flora and Fauna. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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Photo Credits:

Upper Left:       Photo courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, http://midwest.fws.gov/sturgeon/

Upper Right:     Photo courtesy of Konrad P. Schmidt, copyright Konrad P. Schmidt.