The health of the southern Illinois river ecosystems has been in the news recently with IDNR’s announcement that they are re-introducing the native Alligator Gar into several large rivers, including the lower Kaskaskia River.
Dr. Greg Whitledge, with the SIU Center for Fisheries Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences likes the idea of having the Alligator Gar back in its ancestral home. Even though the Alligator Gar is a large, toothy predator, it will not be able to make a dent in the Asian Carp populations.
Researchers at SIU Carbondale are also working to make sure another fish does not disappear from our rivers. Dr. Whitledge, says the native Lake Sturgeon is declining, due to several factors. One factor is the damming of major rivers which often makes the bottom unsuitable for the sturgeon to lay their eggs. Whitledge says another reason for the sturgeon decline is overfishing for the prized eggs that are sold for caviar. He says it takes a female sturgeon at least a decade until she is able to reproduce so excessive harvesting can decimate the populations.
