DNR Sturgeon Spearing Report Day Five

RIPON, Wis (WRPN)- The warm weather and rain Tuesday night put a damper on many sturgeon spearers’ days Wednesday. That was reflected in the lowest harvest day of the 2026 season.

Only 34 lake sturgeon were harvested. The Downtown Oshkosh station registered the most fish, with 9 lake sturgeon. The current totals for the entire Winnebago system are 191 juvenile females, 610 adult females and 604 males, for a total of 1,405 large sturgeon. This means that 83 percent of the adult female harvest cap for the entire Winnebago system has been harvested.

Two fish over 100 pounds were harvested Wednesday. Ryan Laning speared a 111.4 pound, 69-inch lake sturgeon on Lake Winnebago. The other lucky spearer was David Conradt, who registered his 106.2-pound female lake sturgeon at the Neenah station. It was 73.6 inches in length.

Today’s weather conditions will continue to be warm. DNR officials are asking spearers to take caution, particularly around the access points.

Photo credit: Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. After some flight delays, Robert Cave from Wyoming finally landed in Wisconsin and harvested this beautiful 83.1-pound, 72.0-inch lake sturgeon.