Atlantic Sturgeon
© Jean-François Hellio and Nicolas Van Ingen (www.hellio-vaningen.fr)
Species of the Day: Atlantic Sturgeon
Geographical range
www.iucnredlist.org www.iucn.org/sturgeon Help Save Species www.arkive.org
The Atlantic Sturgeon, Acipenser sturio, is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM. Sturgeons are one of the oldest fish families in existence, but with 85 percent of all sturgeon species at risk of extinction, they are also the world’s most threatened animal group. The Atlantic Sturgeon was previously abundant along all European coasts, but today is restricted to a single, reproductive population that breeds in the Gironde, Garonne and Dordogne basins, France. Like all sturgeons, this species is long-lived and matures late, increasing its vulnerability to overfishing. It is harvested both for its highly prized flesh and its eggs which are sold as caviar. Increasing pollution and development, especially channelization, along river systems, has destroyed the spawning and nursery habitats of this species, while the construction of migration obstacles prevents adults from returning to their natal rivers to breed. International trade in the Atlantic Sturgeon is banned through its listing on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). A captive breeding programme is being undertaken with the long-term goal of restocking parts of this species’ former range. Species of the Day is sponsored by
The production of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ is made possible through the IUCN Red List Partnership: IUCN (including the Species Survival Commission), BirdLife International, Conservation International, NatureServe and Zoological Society of London.
Species of the Day: Atlantic Sturgeon
Geographical range
www.iucnredlist.org www.iucn.org/sturgeon Help Save Species www.arkive.org
The Atlantic Sturgeon, Acipenser sturio, is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM. Sturgeons are one of the oldest fish families in existence, but with 85 percent of all sturgeon species at risk of extinction, they are also the world’s most threatened animal group. The Atlantic Sturgeon was previously abundant along all European coasts, but today is restricted to a single, reproductive population that breeds in the Gironde, Garonne and Dordogne basins, France. Like all sturgeons, this species is long-lived and matures late, increasing its vulnerability to overfishing. It is harvested both for its highly prized flesh and its eggs which are sold as caviar. Increasing pollution and development, especially channelization, along river systems, has destroyed the spawning and nursery habitats of this species, while the construction of migration obstacles prevents adults from returning to their natal rivers to breed. International trade in the Atlantic Sturgeon is banned through its listing on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). A captive breeding programme is being undertaken with the long-term goal of restocking parts of this species’ former range. Species of the Day is sponsored by
The production of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ is made possible through the IUCN Red List Partnership: IUCN (including the Species Survival Commission), BirdLife International, Conservation International, NatureServe and Zoological Society of London.
