We're holding an event that celebrates Wisconsin's coolest fish, the Lake Sturgeon!
Every spring, these armored "dinosaur fish" spawn just a couple of blocks from us here at the Princeton Public Library.
Our event activities include cooperative art projects with life-sized sturgeon cutouts, educational presentations by three wonderful local experts, a coloring contest and craft for kids, displays of sturgeon spearing equipment, and more!
There is no charge to attend. Light refreshments will be served.
11AM - 1PM: Community Sturgeon Art Projects
Sponsored by the Princeton Chamber of Commerce’s Whooping Crane & Nature Festival Committee.
Adults: help us paint and decorate SIX life-sized sturgeon cutouts! These four-foot fish will be displayed by local businesses in Princeton for the whole community to enjoy. Kids: participate in our sturgeon coloring contest! 4 winners will receive prizes.
1 PM: Mark Kanitz
Mark will show off his sturgeon spearing equipment, much of which is hand-made. Check out his spear, decoys, mounted sturgeon head, and a pop-up ice shanty made for spearing. He will also bring examples of his stunning art. He has donated many paintings and carvings to fundraisers for Sturgeon for Tomorrow, which funds sturgeon conservation projects. Finally, hear about Mark’s battle with his 2022 sturgeon, an F6 female weighing 141.2 pounds and measuring 78.8 inches.
Check out the Sturgeon for Tomorrow and Mark Kanitz Original Artwork pages on Facebook!
2 PM: Joan Voigt, DNR Educator, Wild Rose Fish Hatchery
Longtime educator Joan Voigt will give a talk focused on spawning and the sturgeon life cycle. She is bringing a large tri-fold display on sturgeon with photos, an egg stages of development display, and preserved young sturgeon samples. She will be doing a PowerPoint presentation and will have a make and take craft project for families with kids.
Read more about her and her work at https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/parks/learn/virtual
3 PM: Shannon Davis-Foust, PhD
Senior Lecturer, Ecologist at UW Oshkosh, former DNR Fisheries Tech
Did you know that fish have “ear stones?” These unique bones from sheepshead are called "lucky stones" and were collected by Native Americans who used them for jewelry, games, and possibly warding off sickness or evil. Today “otoliths” from different fish species, including Lake Sturgeon, can be used to tell us a great deal about how a fish grows, how a lake’s environment has changed, and even how much carbon is in our atmosphere! Shannon Davis-Foust will give a presentation on
otoliths and the clues they provide to the ecology of the Lake Winnebago system.
Read more about her and her work at https://www.uwosh.edu/facstaff/davisfo