Assessing habitat for lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) reintroduction to the Maumee River, Ohio using habitat suitability index models

Lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) were a candidate for reintroduction in the Maumee River, Ohio, where they were historically abundant, but are now functionally extirpated. Our objective was to determine if current habitat quality and quantity could support reintroduction efforts. We developed a spatially explicit habitat suitability index model for two lake sturgeon life stages: spawning adult and age-0 fish. To estimate habitat quality, substrate, water depth, and water velocity were assessed and integrated into suitability index values to delineate good, moderate, and poor areas for each life stage. Each habitat characteristic was mapped and combined to provide an overall assessment of habitat suitability, quantity, and location. Model results indicated 208 ha (10.2% of all habitat) of good adult spawning habitat (e.g., coarse substrates, depths between 0.3 and 8 m, and velocity between 0.5 and 1 m/s) and 529 ha (28.2% of all habitat) of good age-0 habitat (e.g., fine substrates, depths between 0.2 and 6 m, and velocity between 0.1 and 0.7 m/s). Good age-0 habitat was located mostly downstream of good spawning habitat, which will provide nursery areas for age-0 fish after hatch. Our models suggested habitat is not limiting for lake sturgeon and efforts to reintroduce this species into the Maumee River, and for the first time in the Lake Erie basin, were supported. The results of this work supported reintroduction efforts that began in 2018.