NEWS RELEASE
MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES
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The 2025 lake sturgeon fishing season on Black Lake in Cheboygan County, Michigan, will begin at 8 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 1. All anglers must register online in advance to participate in the fishing season, and those age 17 or older must have a valid Michigan fishing license.
The harvest limit for the 2025 season on Black Lake is six lake sturgeon. Officials will close the season when one of two scenarios occurs:
- The sixth fish is harvested.
- Five fish have been harvested at the end of any fishing day.
Fishing hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day of the season. The season will end either at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 5, or when one of the above scenarios is met, at which point anglers will be notified via text message and on the ice by DNR personnel that they must immediately stop fishing for lake sturgeon.
Anyone who wants to participate this year must register online by Jan. 31. Get more registration and season information here.
Participating anglers must bring their own bright red flags (1-foot diameter or larger) to hang on their fishing shanties. Season officials emphasize that anglers are required to hang one or more flags in highly visible locations on their shanties so DNR personnel can readily identify which anglers are sturgeon fishing.
Anyone harvesting a lake sturgeon must immediately contact DNR personnel on the ice. Official registration of each harvested fish will take place at a DNR trailer located on or near the ice at the end of Zollner Road in the northwest part of Black Lake. Harvest registration may include an examination of the fish's internal organs and removal of a piece of fin tissue for DNA analysis or aging.
Lake sturgeon rehabilitation efforts in Black Lake over the last two decades have been a successful collaboration between the DNR, Sturgeon for Tomorrow, tribal agencies, Michigan State University and Tower-Kleber Limited Partnership. This population has increased in the past 20 years due to lake sturgeon rearing and stocking efforts and research and protection of spawning adults, and this trend is expected to continue.
Ice conditions may vary greatly, and anglers should always use extreme caution when ice fishing. The Black Lake sturgeon season start date will not be postponed due to weather or other conditions. The season may be canceled up to 48 hours prior to the start of the season if circumstances pose a significant safety risk to anglers and staff (per Fisheries Order 240). The DNR will post any updated information to the department website and notify anglers via text message and email if any changes occur.
Click here for tips to stay safe on the ice.
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