TIMES RECORD • June 18, 2025
Recently, while having lunch with a colleague on the deck of the Sea Dog restaurant people were watching giant splashes made by sturgeon leaping out of the waters of the Androscoggin just below the bridge. Maine is home to two species of sturgeon — the Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus) and the smaller and less common shovelnose sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus platorynchus). Both of these are protected and fishing for them is prohibited. On the other side of the river, at the foot of the 250th Anniversary Park, there was another crowd of onlookers — parents, kids and anglers. This is not only a sign of recovery for the sturgeon population, but also a sign of recovery for the entire watershed. ~ Susan Olcott