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00:00World, where history and conservation collide.
00:03Inside, we uncover the story of a prehistoric giant that still roams the Great Lakes,
00:09the Lake Sturgeon.
00:11Then it's time to hit the water, chasing down one of these river monsters ourselves.
00:15What we hook into will push our gear and our strength to the limits.
00:20And when an unlikely catch hits the line,
00:23we'll find out if its bad reputation on the dinner plate is true or just a myth.
00:27I'm Kyle Green.
00:28I travel the globe with my best friends hunting for wild game and dynamic conservation stories.
00:34Join us on our adventure as we escape the shackles of the modern world
00:37and gain a deeper understanding of where our food comes from.
00:41Welcome to Greenway Outdoors.
00:46Welcome to the oldest aquarium in North America, established August 18, 1904.
00:52This is the Belle Isle Aquarium.
00:54The Belle Isle Aquarium isn't just another stop on our journey.
00:58It's the oldest public aquarium in the United States and a true piece of living history.
01:03For generations, it's been a gateway for people in Detroit to connect with the underwater world.
01:09It houses an incredible collection of native and exotic species.
01:13But what really makes it special is the team behind it.
01:16Now I came here to meet with the Department of Natural Resources, fisheries research biologist Andrew Briggs,
01:21to learn about one of North America's most ancient fish, the lake sturgeon.
01:26But first, curator Dr. Paul Schuert is giving me a brief history of this remarkable place.
01:32It was built in 1904. It was opened in 1904.
01:35It was designed by Detroit architect Albert Kahn, who's rather famous for his designs.
01:41He designed this building and the conservatory next door.
01:45They were open together, and we've been open ever since.
01:49Now, I heard some rumors about rum runners.
01:52Detroit was a gateway for about 80% of the liquor that came into the Northwest.
01:59Yeah.
01:59And a lot of it came across Belle Isle, and they would store the liquor in the basement here.
02:07There's underneath the fountain on the other end of the island.
02:10That's what the rumors are.
02:11Yeah.
02:12And this was one of 800 speakeasies in the Detroit area during Prohibition.
02:18So was the aquarium like a front?
02:20I just think it was something after dark.
02:23Yeah.
02:24They had little shindigs downstairs.
02:26Do the employees here still party like that?
02:28Are you guys, you guys, you guys settle down now.
02:30Yeah.
02:32Just, just at night.
02:33Yeah, just at night.
02:34I love it.
02:35What are the biggest problems facing the sturgeon right now in Michigan?
02:39They were reduced to 1% of their historical level.
02:41So with lake sturgeon, they're a long-lived species.
02:44Takes them a long time to mature.
02:45Males don't mature until they're like 15 years old.
02:47Females closer to 20 to 25.
02:49So once they start getting the habitat they need and all that, it's still going to take some time to recover.
02:53But right now, the main issues are still, a lot of dams are blocking their migration.
02:58Routes, so they can't reach their spawning areas.
03:01So that's kind of the main issue today is restoring their access to spawning habitat and then restoring spawning habits.
03:08So here in the St. Clair Detroit River system, there's artificial reefs that we put in and kind of increase their spawning here.
03:13We've only ever caught one lake sturgeon and it was in the St. Clair River and it was over 70 inches.
03:18Holy cow, he's taking out of line, boys.
03:33He's running out of line right now.
03:35Oh my goodness, he's huge, man.
03:37Oh.
03:53Dude, you feel like I really just hooked it on the trolling motor.
03:55Is that bad?
03:57Yeah.
03:58Yeah!
03:59Yeah!
04:00Woo!
04:01Yeah!
04:02Holy cow!
04:03I'm hoping to get another one now, and it would be a good one.
04:06Yeah!
04:07Yeah!
04:08Yeah!
04:09Woo!
04:10Yeah!
04:11Holy cow!
04:24I'm hoping to get another one now, and it would be a good one.
04:26And it would be really cool to get one in the slot, which is like 42 to 50.
04:31Why do you guys pick 42 to 50 for people to be able to keep them?
04:34And then also, like, everyone knows this.
04:37Like, in the fishing community, too, we are the most judgmental people on the face of the earth, right?
04:41So there's people, like, if you keep a trout, you're the worst person that ever existed.
04:45Yep.
04:46And then there's talk of if you keep a sturgeon, even if it's in the slot, you're the worst person ever.
04:50Like, as a biologist, looking at the numbers, not necessarily your personal feelings for it,
04:55what are your thoughts on it?
04:56So, like, we allow harvest for a reason.
04:58So we monitor our population very closely.
05:00We know how much harvest it can handle.
05:02So, roughly, we want to keep, based on our management plans, we want to keep harvest to about 2 to 5% of the population size.
05:09So that definitely allows for some harvest.
05:11But as you mentioned, a lot of people, they don't want to keep a fish.
05:14I mean, these are fish that they can live for hundreds of years, and tons of people can catch these.
05:19So we got fish that have been reported, that we've tagged, that have been caught by 12 anglers.
05:22Wow.
05:23So it just shows you the value of that specific fish.
05:25Yeah.
05:26It can be tens of people that caught a single sturgeon, so.
05:28There's a hundred-year-old out there not learning lessons.
05:30Yeah, exactly.
05:31He didn't feel that hook again.
05:32Exactly, yeah.
05:33But yeah, as far as people, like, people can keep them.
05:35A lot of people, like, they don't want to, but we don't dissuade people from keeping them if they want to.
05:41So between 42 and 50 inches is our slot, and that's set in place as 50 inches is about when females start to mature.
05:48Okay.
05:49So it's protecting the spawning females primarily is what the slot limit is doing.
05:52That's why it's there.
05:53Yeah.
05:54Does fishing actually help this fish?
05:56So, we believe it does because, so, a lot of people, they'll never see a lake sturgeon their whole life.
06:01Right.
06:02But fishing gives them an opportunity to do so, and it's really hard for somebody to get an appreciation for a fish like a lake sturgeon until they see one in person and get to hold one.
06:10So that's one of the big things about fishing for sturgeon that I think has really helped conservation, especially in our area.
06:15We have this really, like, driven fishing community for lake sturgeon, and they're really conservation-driven.
06:22They want to help protect the fish, help restore the fish, so it's really beneficial in our area.
06:26I've traveled all over the world and seen so many different fish species and met different cultures and learned how they interact with the fish.
06:32And the one thing I find consistently is the fish that have conservation efforts and have people actually working towards furthering the species are the ones that have value to people.
06:42Now, I feel like all fish have their own value, but if people aren't catching them, if people aren't eating them, if people aren't going after them, using them as a sport fish, they just don't care.
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07:03The Greenway Outdoors is brought to you by Ram Trucks.
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07:12Your adventure starts here.
07:17Welcome back to the Greenway Outdoors.
07:19We are in Michigan targeting lake sturgeon and we've just arrived at the St. Clair River.
07:26Whenever I'm going to a new lake, new body of water, or targeting a new fish species, I find it's pretty helpful when you see a guide service boat that specializes in that species and that water, you stop and ask questions.
07:38What's going on?
07:39How you doing?
07:40Good, how are you?
07:41I'm Kyle.
07:42Hey Kyle, I'm Anthony.
07:43Nice to meet you, Anthony.
07:44I hear you're the guy to talk to about sturgeon.
07:46Yeah, I've done a little bit of sturgeon fishing over the years, about 20 years of it.
07:50Oh, wow.
07:51Yeah, I'm going out for kind of my first time out on these waters and I'm taking the Sea-Dew.
07:56The Sea-Dew?
07:57Yeah, but hear me out.
07:58It's a fish pro, so it's made for this.
08:00Okay.
08:01But I'm kind of going to be pushing about, I'm going to be pushing the limits on it today for sure.
08:05Yeah, just wear your life jacket in case that thing tips over, they pull you over.
08:08Always, always, always.
08:09I just, I know I don't want to ask a fisherman his spots and I know not to break those rules,
08:14but is there anything you can tell me to point me in the right direction or some tactics?
08:17Yeah, absolutely.
08:18Typically, you want to target the deeper holes.
08:21Okay.
08:22Throughout the river, you're going to have areas where it's going to go from 30, 40 feet.
08:25It's going to dip down to 50, 60, even 70 feet.
08:28Okay.
08:29So a lot of times, a bigger fish will lay down in them holes, especially during the day, night.
08:34They can roam around, but them holes are really good areas to target.
08:38They kind of specifically will hold those fish in that area.
08:41Right.
08:42So those are good areas to definitely try to target and check out.
08:46I'm limited because I can only fish during the day, obviously.
08:49Is there anything I should do different or what baits would you recommend because I'm only fishing during the day?
08:54So a good bait to start with, worms and minnows.
08:57Okay.
08:58Those two definitely, it's the easiest to get.
09:00You go to the store, you can buy them right down the street.
09:03You know, if you're putting worms on, put two, three worms on.
09:06You know, I like them to dangle down about two, three inches off the hook.
09:10And you're going to use about approximately 12 to 16 ounces of weight.
09:14I prefer to use 16 just because then I can pretty much fish any area of the river, whether it's fast current, slow current, if I'm fishing 40 feet or 60, 70 feet.
09:24Right.
09:25Yeah.
09:26It's going to hold down on that bottom no matter the current.
09:28Absolutely.
09:29Okay.
09:30Well, that kind of gets me.
09:31Look, look for the deep holes.
09:32Use that bait.
09:33Are you heading out now?
09:34I'm going to be, yes.
09:35So you go out during the day too.
09:36It's not only a night thing then.
09:38No, you can fish anytime.
09:39They kind of bite in spurts.
09:40Okay.
09:41So I would say within a five hour period, you're going to catch one of them biting periods.
09:45Okay.
09:46If you don't catch something in 20 minutes, do you move?
09:48Depends if I'm marking fish and I know there's fish around me, I'll typically stay in that area.
09:54Okay.
09:55Because the general rule is that you hear all over the place, don't leave fish to find fish.
10:00Fair enough.
10:01Well, thank you for your help.
10:02You're very welcome.
10:03I appreciate it very much.
10:04Nice meeting you.
10:05Nice meeting you.
10:06I'll probably see you out there.
10:07Sounds good.
10:08I'll be there.
10:09I'll be the only see-do out there that doesn't make you mad.
10:10All right.
10:11I'll keep an eye out.
10:12Make sure you don't tip over out there.
10:14Well, that's a bit of a relief.
10:15I was honestly pretty worried that fishing during the day wasn't going to pan out well from sturgeon.
10:19Whenever you talk to people, they're like, it's a nighttime thing.
10:22It's a nighttime thing.
10:23But I think it's just about how much time your baits are in the water, not necessarily the time of day.
10:38Boy, that's sure a nice jet ski.
10:40I love the thing.
10:41I like because I can just go out and that's it.
10:44You know what I mean?
10:45I'm just on the water in seconds.
10:46I can do it myself.
10:47I don't need anybody else there.
10:49And if I'm not catching fish, I can go tooling around for a while, cool off.
10:53That's a beautiful rig right there.
10:54Thanks, man.
10:55The Greenway Outdoors is brought to you by Ram Trucks.
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11:14Sea-Doo.
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11:16The Sea-Doo Life.
11:20Let's take a look.
11:24Mama help port down in the forest.
11:37i spent all my time just trying to ignore it missing all the loving that was there for me
11:46so the rig is pretty simple while very big these are 12 foot rods which aren't ideal
11:54probably want a little bit shorter rod for this type of situation but these are what i had from
11:58casting for sharks in the 10 000 islands so this is what i got to use they're heavy and these fish
12:05get really big like a lot of people will catch 100 pound fish out here fishing for sturgeon makes me
12:13stop and do a little math a hundred pound fish could be well over a hundred years old meaning
12:19my grandfather who passed away before i was born could have dangled a fishing hook in front of the
12:25very sturgeon i hope to catch today that fish could have even been in the same river system during
12:31world war ii as i got lost in my thoughts my rod went nuts and i had a fish on
12:37nope probably catfish all right i'm on right away
12:46but it does not feel like a sturgeon if i was a vet man i'd say catfish but
12:52i don't know for sure yet most folks call this fish sheep's head but the real name is freshwater
12:57drum they make a drumming sound during spawning and use powerful throat teeth to crush clams and
13:03other crustaceans on the river bottom round here they have a bad reputation on the dinner table but
13:08i've never tried one myself so we're gonna keep this one for dinner awesome fish just a few moments
13:15later my other rod got hit and this time i knew it was a sturgeon
13:19that's tight that's a fish big fish big fish
13:28this is gonna be a sturgeon or the biggest sheep's head world record you ever saw
13:40this is a big fish really big fish sturgeon are known as crazy fighters they'll dig they'll go on
13:54long runs they'll make you think you've tired them out and then all of a sudden they'll go on
13:59another run and there he goes again and you don't want to think of this as a sprint
14:04it's a marathon all right i got my first look at him he's huge oh wow he's big really big oh wow
14:17a fish this size could easily be well over 40 years old up to 50 years old
14:25it's safe to say he's older than me and that's kind of neat to think he's an 80s baby
14:32okay i'm not about to try and make this run with this dinosaur again so i'm gonna pull over to
14:42shore and get in the water so i can unhook him and keep him safe and keep him alive
14:45i think he's tired enough now that i'm gonna be able to accomplish that
14:50all right okay so this is a lake sturgeon
14:54come on buddy massive strong smart old the skin is like covered in sharp points
15:05the little hangy things you see on the bottom of his chin there the barbell so i actually
15:10used to sense food on the bottom of the water if you were to go through their poop and stuff you're
15:15gonna see a lot of sand and shells and things because they're sifting through the mud and eating
15:21stuff off the bottom and that's exactly how we got this one is we had our bait just sitting on
15:26the bottom he scooped up and got it this fish is nowhere near the slot fish so we're gonna let
15:32him go but i'm gonna take the hook out nurse him back to health and then send him on his way but to
15:36be honest with you this isn't a trout this thing is a dinosaur they've been here for millions of years
15:42unchanged and he doesn't need too much help from me because he's ready to go already
15:46absolutely incredible fish the greenway outdoors is brought to you by ram trucks nothing stops ram and
15:56by bass pro shops and cabela's your adventure starts here lem game processing equipment wilderness
16:04athlete fuel for the rugged rufus teague seasoning sauces and snacks ski do experience that ski do
16:13feeling summit tree stance hunting elevated blokes modern men's health
16:24welcome back to the greenway outdoors jeff is setting up the grill
16:28to find out if sheep's head is any good
16:38so kyle got to do the fun part going sturgeon fishing unfortunately he didn't catch one in the
16:46slot which means we couldn't keep one the fish that we did catch we could keep was a sheep's head
16:50or a fresh water drum so i get the experimental part of trying to make this into something delicious
16:57for most people this is a bycatch when they're trying to catch sturgeon they treat it like a trash fish
17:02they just throw it back what i want to do is i'm going to treat this fish with the respect that it
17:07might deserve i'm going to take this one i'm going to just add salt and pepper a little bit of lemon
17:11inside the cavity grill it up until it reaches about 145 internal temp and give the meat an honest try
17:19so the purpose of that fish is to experience it the way it is naturally don't put a whole lot of fancy
17:25stuff on it but to give the fish the best foot forward let it be everything it could be
17:30i'm also going to prepare filet with some of the fanciest ingredients i've got some black pepper
17:35from iceland i've got some whole black peppercorn from italy freshly ground and then i'm also going
17:41to finish it with a little bit of compound butter that i made using rufous teague fish rub and i'm
17:47going to pair that with some green beans with a little bit of shallot a little bit of garlic and a red pepper
17:53now that whole fish should be done by now oh yeah look at that take that off being careful not to
18:04mess up the skin here plop that down now while that's cooling i'm going to get this in
18:10it'll cook in about 10 minutes and everything should be ready to eat
18:14all right so i think it's safe to say that i've given this fish every opportunity to be absolutely
18:25delicious in fact i'll give it one more last hurrah i'm going to hit it with some lemon too
18:31just to play safe all right let's dig in all right looks nice and white and flaky
18:38that's not a bad fish it's very mild doesn't have a lot of fishy flavor i would not call this a trash
18:48fish having tried it but let's get into the fancy one with the compound butter that butter's melting on
18:53there no question that is fantastic that is an amazing fish and anybody who tells you that this is
19:03a trash fish is dead wrong oh that's so good on today's episode we set out to catch one of the
19:15oldest fish in the world but it was the trash fish that reminded us of something greater in god's eyes
19:21no part of creation is worthless as ecclesiastes 3 says he has made everything beautiful in its time
19:29so whether it's a river giant or a sheep's head every creature god has made has value and everyday outdoors
19:36is a gift that's meant to be treasured
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