White Sturgeon, Columbia River, Bonneville Dam

[oregon]

175 million year old, North America's largest freshwater fish, pics taken in Washington State at the Bonneville Dam (last dam before the Pacific Ocean) on the lower Columbia River at the visitor's center fish windows:









They look ancient, are cartilaginous like sharks, have huge mouths, are covered with skin not scales, sport armored lumps, and they look sleek and capable.

My Grandfather told me, when I was a child, stories of fishing for Sturgeon with dead and rotting rabbits, hook and chain and teams of horses to pull them from the water and onto the land.

I've read that they can reach near 1800 pounds, over 20 feet long and can live for over 100 years. The larger one, in the pics above, looked to be larger than four feet long (when salmon came too near him he would body-bump them aside). The two Sturgeon stayed together and near the one window while I took about 600 photos.

Today I saw them in the fish ladders on the Oregon and Washington State sides of the Columbia at the Bonneville Dam for the first time in my life. I've never seen them in the fish ladders before. It was my understanding that they stay put and don't migrate...

Imagine the surprise of a swimmer upon meeting this fellow or his bigger brother. Oh my!

oregon

[Praxis]

Very cool. Only place I've ever see a sturgeon is at the hatchery on the Oregon side near Bonneville. I would have been pretty wild to see some of the monsters they pulled out of the river in the late-19th/early 20th centuries.

[FLYBYU44]

Very cool. We used to live by Gardiner Dam on the South Saskatchewan River, my parents owned a very small motel there. One summer we had some divers stay with us, they were cleaning out the intakes for the turbines on the dam. I guess when they went down to clean the intakes they were scared out of their wits several times by fish that were close to the same size as them, likely sturgeon as well.

[oregon]

Very cool. Only place I've ever see a sturgeon is at the hatchery on the Oregon side near Bonneville. I would have been pretty wild to see some of the monsters they pulled out of the river in the late-19th/early 20th centuries.

Four pics from the Oregon side, captive fish, Sturgeon:

Praxis, here is the Oregon side of the dam where you found the terrific Sturgeon pond and viewing area (AKA aquarium). The big fella, one of several captives, is about 10 feet long and around 70 years old. Sidebar: My Grandfather-in-law, Colonel Harry Skerry, was an engineer on this Army Corp. of Engineers Dam project and a Batan Death March survivor.

One of the pics gives you an idea of the size of one of the old giants taken from the mighty Columbia. It shows two Native Americans, brilliant fishermen. Relatives, just guessing here, from whom I bot tasty smoke fish, salmon, yesterday.









oregon

[oregon]

Very cool. We used to live by Gardiner Dam on the South Saskatchewan River, my parents owned a very small motel there. One summer we had some divers stay with us, they were cleaning out the intakes for the turbines on the dam. I guess when they went down to clean the intakes they were scared out of their wits several times by fish that were close to the same size as them, likely sturgeon as well.

FLYBYU44, these Sturgeon, the wild ones in the rapidly moving water of the fish ladders, do not look like the sedate bottom dwellers I had always believed them to be. They quickly body-slammed the big Chinook Salmon that came too close to them and neatly put other large Salmon in a pinch between themselves and the glass of the viewing window I was photographing thru. They are streamlined, easily swim at the speed necessary to transit the fish ladder's rushing water, and don't tolerate the proximity of other fish.

I can easily imagine a diver being vigorously bumped/slammed by a White Sturgeon if they were to come too close while working on the dam's plumbing. They appear shark-like and not carp-like. And, they don't take any guff from passing fish.

I've been told that a sealion was seen in this fish ladder one spring. I would have loved to get a pic of that. They, male sealions, swim in from the ocean each spring and fatten on salmon who queue for these fish ladders. Once they are as fat as they can be its back to the ocean beaches to mate.

oregon

[clovisc]

awesome, AWESOME fish! i'm hugely jealous!!! looks like some bright salmon there, too! beautiful!

[StuntZombie]

Great photos. The only time I've seen one it was dead unfortunately. I was fishing with my folks in the Chesapeake Bay, when we saw the seagulls hovering over something large in the water. We got within a few feet of the carcass, but couldn't figure out what the heck it was. All we knew is that it was about half as big as our 17ft boat, and we had never seen anything like it before.

They really are fascinating creatures. It's a shame they've been almost completely wiped out.

[VashHash]

Thats a HUGE fish

[oregon]

awesome, AWESOME fish! i'm hugely jealous!!! looks like some bright salmon there, too! beautiful!

My commission in life is to make clovisc/fish-master take notice :D .

The salmon runs have been good last season and again this season. It boosts my feeling of well-being to see lots of healthy fish enroute to reproduce upstream. I get kind of a "all is well" feeling. And, it is satisfying to see the terrific Native Americans catching and selling fish.

And, unlike the sturgeon who seemed to be holding position, the salmon move left to right up the fish ladder with a will, almost panicked looking back at me with their fish eyes. Places to go, fish to see and things to do.

I slept on the question: Why are there sturgeon holding position in the fish ladders? Bottom feeders don't seem to belong in the swift moving water of the restricted cement fish ladders. I came up with it must be either reproduction or feeding caused.

Since I usually, year in and year out, see lots of Lamprey Eels and saw none swimming or sticking to the viewing glass I think the sturgeon are waiting/searching for the eels. Also, I noticed that the official eel count is drastically down from its 10-year average that is posted on the wall. Just my speculation based on casual observation.

oregon

[oregon]

Great photos. The only time I've seen one it was dead unfortunately. I was fishing with my folks in the Chesapeake Bay, when we saw the seagulls hovering over something large in the water. We got within a few feet of the carcass, but couldn't figure out what the heck it was. All we knew is that it was about half as big as our 17ft boat, and we had never seen anything like it before.

They really are fascinating creatures. It's a shame they've been almost completely wiped out.

Thank you for the kind words StuntDouble.

I have always wanted to visit and explore the huge Chesapeake Bay. On the map it looks like you could take a lifetime investigating the Chesapeake. It is on my list, definitely, and the sooner the better.

I don't know much about the Atlantic Sturgeon over in your neck of the woods. Apparently, they are harvested for their eggs/caviar. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_sturgeon

Fishing with the folks. Man of man do those memories get better as the years shoot by like they have been shot from a gun. Good times. Thank you for the story.

oregon

[oregon]

Thats a HUGE fish

The rules don't let you keep the giants, nor the little ones, now-a-days.

Can you imagine catching one in years gone bye. What a fish story you would have to tell. You would have to get several people standing next to each other with their arms outstretched to their sides in order to explain the size. No one, nobody would believe you, uh uh, never :rolleyes: .

I used to keep and breed fresh-water fish in aquariums, mostly Congo River cichlids. Can you say nanochromis nudiceps? So I really enjoy seeing fish ladder, what kind of looks like a giant aquarium in the cool quiet of the dam's fish viewing amphitheater which is covered in thick soft colorful carpet. Being there, when there few to no people, puts me to sleep after just a short time. The fish, like a tranquilizer, seem to put the beast in me to rest.

oregon

[Praxis]

Oregon,
Thanks for the additional pictures. Very cool. Also, glad to hear that the salmon numbers are up this year. Those Chinooks make for some great eating (though I think Sockeye tastes the best).

[Spydergirl]

The Atlantic and short-nosed sturgeon are the ones we have over here on the East coast and both are beautiful up close. I've never seen one as big as the pictures you've posted but having to weigh, measure and sample these ancient beasts was a joy of my former job. Since moving up the corporate ladder I don't get to see them up close and personal as much but my observers report seeing many more this past year than ever before. This makes me hopeful that the stock is coming back up.
On a side note, I grew up on Lake Erie outside of Buffalo and we had a section called Sturgeon Point where I learned to scuba dive. Never saw a sturgeon but that's probably a good thing b/c that would have scared the crap out of me!

[Jazz]

Very cool. We used to live by Gardiner Dam on the South Saskatchewan River, my parents owned a very small motel there. One summer we had some divers stay with us, they were cleaning out the intakes for the turbines on the dam. I guess when they went down to clean the intakes they were scared out of their wits several times by fish that were close to the same size as them, likely sturgeon as well.

You know, I'm originally from Swift Current, and I heard a story pretty much like that - cool, bro.

- best wishes, Jazz.