The story of a fascinating fish and the forward-thinking people who saved them in Wisconsin.
For millennia, sturgeon swam the waterways of Wisconsin. Before the 1800s, an estimated eleven million sturgeon lived in Lake Michigan alone. Menominee and Ojibwe people depended on the fish for food and harvested them sustainably. But in the early 1900s, the lake sturgeon was near extinction. Saving Our Sturgeon tells the remarkable story of lake sturgeon in Wisconsin, the conservation efforts to save the species, and what is being done to keep the population healthy and thriving today.
THE STORY
In Saving Our Sturgeon, readers will learn about the natural history of the lake sturgeon—its anatomy, behavior, and habitat—and the factors that threatened its survival, from overharvesting to the building of dams that prevented sturgeon from reaching spawning areas. The book, written for young readers aged ten and up, explains how government agencies, conservationists, and citizen groups worked together to save the sturgeon population in Wisconsin. The book includes a chapter about the Menominee Nation’s work to revitalize cultural traditions focused on the sturgeon and restore access to the fish on their reservation. The book also highlights how young people can get involved with sturgeon conservation efforts.
Ages 11 – 14; Grade level 6 – 9; Lexile® measure 1060L
Activities and programming ideas
THE AUTHOR
Rebecca Hogue Wojahn is the author of many books for children, including the nonfiction picture book Glow: Animals with Their Own Night-Lights; the historical biography Dr. Kate: Angel on Snowshoes (Wisconsin Historical Society Press); and the educational nonfiction series Follow That Food Chain. Her books have been honored by Junior Library Guild, the National Science Teachers Association, and Bank Street Best Books of the Year, and have won numerous state and regional awards. When Wojahn isn’t writing, she talks books, fiddles with technology, and teaches kids as a school media and technology integration specialist (a.k.a. librarian) in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
THE BOOK
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2025
ISBN: 978-1976600517
To order single copies, visit the WHS Press, your independent bookstore or borrow from your local library.
