Did you catch the "Sturgeon Moon" last night?
SYRACUSE -- Did you catch that full moon last night? It was very impressive for much of our viewing area. Our morning anchor Megan Coleman and I were discussing it early this morning on “Today In Central New York” on NBC3. When I started off my drive this morning from Ithaca, I could see it through a few clouds. But by the time I got to Syracuse, we had just a thin veil of high, thin, “cirrus” clouds (check out a simple cloud chart here) which really enhanced the appearance of that full moon. To be quite frank, it was absolutely gorgeous.
Now, contrast that beautiful image of this morning’s moon with the fish that this particular full moon is named after: the sturgeon – quite a different sight! According to Spaceweather.com this particular full moon is often referred to as the “Sturgeon Moon”, and was named as such by Native Americans living in the Great Lakes. During the month of August, they typically caught a large number of sturgeon - therefore naming the full moon of that month after those ancient, slimy fish. Don’t let their appearance fool you though. According to this article from Thousandislandslife.com, sturgeon have been highly prized for their meat and caviar.
While the sturgeon are officially illegal to fish for due to their status as a “Threatened Species”, you still hear stories every now and then of an angler in the Great Lakes or Finger Lakes accidentally hooking a sturgeon. Perhaps the next time you are out on a fishing excursion on any of our beautiful local waters, you may just spot someone reeling in a rare sturgeon. If so, think of how the natives prized this fish, and how it led them to name this full moon after them.
Do you have any great sturgeon stories? If so, feel free to comment at the bottom of this story!
Also, don't forget to submit any great sturgeon pictures you may have on the "MyCNYCentral" section of our website.
