“Forth upon the Gitche Gumee,
On the shining Big-Sea-Water,
Forth to catch the sturgeon Nahma,
Mishe-Nahma, King of Fishes,
In his birch canoe exulting,
All alone went Hiawatha.”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow,
From The Song of Hiawatha
I love to cruise the silent shorelines
By the light of a full Sturgeon Moon
My dog Tater and I, silently glide along
Often hours before the first call of the loon
Many Native Americans called the Full Moon this month
The Sturgeon Moon, since this month is when they fished
They cruised along these moonlit shorelines in their canoes
For them, this Full August Moon, was a simple time of bliss
Armed only with long wooden spears, on this Big-Sea-Water
They glided along in search of the King of Fishes, Mishe-Nahma
Since childhood I have marveled at these ancient, armor-plated fish
When I would spot them in these lake shallows, filling me with awe
These sturgeon are among Earth’s oldest living types of fish
They’ve been dwelling in these waters over 200 million years
And, like so many other forms of life today, they are vanishing
Every August Moon, I see fewer of them, which brings no cheer
These days, I very often sadly wish that I had lived hundreds of years ago
I consider myself extremely fortunate to have seen these wondrous sturgeon
The world is changing much too fast for both myself, and for Mishe-Nahma
And last night, as Tater and I cruised along, my soul was mourning their end
For millions of years, over 20 species of these sturgeon ranged from
Subtropical to subarctic waters in North America, Europe, and Eurasia.
Today, these ancient giants are considered highly vulnerable and endangered,
Due to massive habitat destruction, overfishing, and extensive water pollution.
For centuries, they had been a major food source for many Native Americans,
And back in the year 1310, King Edward II of England called them a ‘Royal Fish.’
But very sadly to me, I know that far too soon, these noble Nahma will be no more.
©Sturgeon Moon Outing 2011, Mr. Ed
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love,
sis
Allen
Anna
Full of oceanic compassion for these wonderful creatures ~
Your teachings take me to new levels of realization.
Blessings,
Christine
~Mr. Ed~
I so enjoy coming here to read about all God's
creatures...great and small!!
Lady Vivian
You did live that long ago, as this incarnation of you has these memories to bring to us...(anyway, you do LOOK that old...) Jurseeeeeeeeey
your words hold, persuade and delight;
you narrate a very different world to where i am -
here, August is the month of the Hungry Ghosts
John
Peace & Blessings,
Carolyn