A review of lake sturgeon habitat requirements and strategies to protect and enhance sturgeon habitat

Lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) have recently been designated by the Committee on the Status of Species at Risk in Ontario (COSSARO) as a threatened species in northwestern Ontario and in the Great Lakes drainage basin. The lake sturgeon receives protection under the Endangered Species Act (2007)(ESA), which requires that a recovery strategy be developed within two years of a species being listed as threatened. Habitat provisions are to be included in the recovery strategy as well as implementation goals. This report has been prepared to summarize lake sturgeon habitat requirements, to provide a synopsis of the impacts various activities may have on lake sturgeon habitat, and to review habitat mitigation and enhancement strategies which have been employed in various jurisdictions to date.