New spawning reefs to boost native fish in St. Clair River

Construction of two new fish-spawning reefs is about to begin in the St. Clair River northeast of Detroit, the latest chapter in a decade-plus effort to restore such native species as lake sturgeon, walleye and lake whitefish.

The goal of the UM-led project is to boost fish populations by providing river-bottom rock structures suitable for spawning.

The $3.5 million project is funded by the federal Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and is a follow-up to rock reefs built in the Detroit and St. Clair rivers in 2004, 2008 and 2012. U-M is leading the habitat-restoration project in collaboration with various local, state, federal and private partners.

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