Iconic whitefish on edge of collapse as Great Lakes biodiversity crisis deepens
From: BridgeMI.com
- Whitefish have remained a staple in the Great Lakes for millennia, surviving threats that decimated other species
- Now, they are on the brink themselves; catches have plummeted, newborns are dying and adults are approaching old age
- Some fear the fish could disappear entirely from their once-prime habitat in the lower Great Lakes
LELAND — Locals and tourists alike flock to The Cove restaurant for Great Lakes whitefish, served 10 ways with a view of the docks where fishermen have hauled in Lake Michigan’s bounty for nearly two centuries.
“Why get something else?” said Bob Hasse, a lifelong Michigander who visits the place every summer. “I can get a hamburger anywhere.”
Fried, baked, smoked, whipped into a pâté or dried and ground into powder in the Anishinaabe tradition, whitefish have been a cornerstone of Great Lakes cuisine and culture for millenia, revered for their mild taste, tenderness and abundance.
Like lobster to Maine and salmon to Alaska, “it is perhaps one of, if not the signature animals in all of the state’s long history,” said Matthew Daley, a Great Lakes historian at Grand Valley State University.