| U.S. Range in the Pacific Ocean |
Alaska to Baja (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983) |
| Substrate |
Smooth cobblestone or boulder (for spawning)
Sandy mud, coarse sand, or cobble (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| General Salinity Range (ppt) |
Can complete entire life cycle in freshwater
Generally– spawn in rivers and live in marine and freshwater (Emmett et al. 1991)
Mainly freshwater (Eschmeyer and Herald and Herald 1983) |
| Maximum Overall Recorded Size (cm) |
610 (historical record) (Eschmeyer and Herald and Herald 1983) |
| Average Maximum Overall Length (cm) |
Largest freshwater fish in North America (Emmett et al. 1991)
300 (Eschmeyer and Herald and Herald 1983) |
| Average Maximum weight (kg) |
181 (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983) |
| Overall Maximum Age (years) |
100+ (estimate) (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Overall Growth Rate |
Slow growing
Late maturing (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Overall Age at Maturity (years) |
11 (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983) |
| Female Age at Maturity (years) |
15 (Oregon) (Stockley 1981 in Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Overall Length at Maturity (cm) |
120 (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Female Length at Maturity (cm) |
170 (Oregon) (Stockley 1981 in Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Type of Reproduction |
Gonochoristic, oviparous, iteroparous
Broadcast spawner (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Fecundity |
4,700,000 (for 270 cm female) (Moyle 1976 in Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Time of Year of Spawning |
End of May–Early July (Columbia River) (Palmer et al. 1988 in Emmett et al. 1991)
|
| Number of Spawns per season |
Female spawns 1 time every 3–5 years (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Spawning/Temperature Relationship (°C) |
13–20 (Columbia River) (Palmer et al. 1988 in Emmett et al. 1991)
Can keep species at optimal growth water temps up until November, prior to spawning (spawning is usually March through June) |
| Description of Eggs |
Adhesive after fertilization (Emmett et al. 1991)
Demersal (Emmett et al. 1991)
Average around 3.5 mm in diameter |
| Days to Hatch |
7 (temperature dependent) (Conte et al. 1988 Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Temperature for Egg Survival (°C) |
14–16 (eggs develop best in hatchery)
10–18 (can incubate) (Wang et al. 1985 in Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Salinity for Egg Survival (ppt) |
Only in freshwater (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Salinity for Larval Survival (ppt) |
Only in freshwater (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Habitat where Juveniles are found |
Demersal (Emmett et al. 1991)
Older juveniles in river and estuarine (Emmett et al. 1991)
Young individuals only in freshwater (McEnroe and Cech 1985 in Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Length when Juvenile Settles out (cm) |
2 (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Salinity for Juvenile Survival (ppt) |
Young individuals have trouble osmoregulating (McEnroe and Cech 1985 in Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Juvenile Food Preference |
Small juveniles eat Benthic algae, Small Invertebrates
Juveniles eat Amphipods, Shrimp, Mysids, Bivalves, Insect larvae (Radtke 1966 in Emmett et al. 1991)
Large juveniles also eat Eulachon and Northern Anchovy (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Habitat where Adults are found (depth in meters) |
Demersal (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Adult Food Preference |
Eat similar food as juveniles
Also eat Clams, Amphipods, Shrimp (Crangon species and ghost), mud shrimp, other invertebrates (Semakula and Larkin 1968, Muir et al. 1988 both in Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Food Eaten in Laboratory Setting |
Optimum growth at hatchery with diet of 40% crude protein (Moore et al. 1988 in Emmett et al. 1991)
Feeding rate of subyearlings at 18°C was 1.5–2.0% body weight/day (Hung et al. 1989 in Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Environmental Considerations |
Optimal growth at 20–21°C
For final maturation 4-8 months prior to spawning (optimal is 10–12°C)
And a separate water temp regime for spawning induction and egg incubation (optimal is 15–16°C) |
| Commercial Fishery |
199 tons landed in Columbia River in 1985 (Emmett et al. 1991) |
| Market |
Roe valuable caviar (Emmett et al. 1991)
Flesh and eggs are sold (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983)
Caviar is very valuable |
| Additional Remarks |
Aquaculture in California produces 4.5 kg fish in 30 months (Anderson 1988 in Emmett et al. 1991)
White sturgeon favored to green sturgeon because whites have:
Fast growth (market size fish 7-9 kg in 3 years)
Large eggs (avg 3.5 mm) but green sturgeon eggs are even larger
Better meat yield
|
| Location where Species has been Researched/Farmed |
Some places are culturing on a small scale (Abernathy, Washington and Idaho)
Washington–some work is being done for mitigation of McNary Pool on Washington/Oregon border and they may have planted some in Willamette River
There has been recent development of white sturgeon culture in Italy and other European nations. Two companies in British Columbia also initiated culturing white sturgeon (Target Marine Industries, and M&E Enterprises, Ltd)
Stolt Sea Farm www.stoltseafarm.com receives up to $1000/kg caviar |
