Ok guys need help finding them. I am going to raise them and put them in a large spring fed pond I'm building. I'd like to find whites, and beluga and diamond which I know aren't native. But will be fun to fish for once they get big! I can't seem to find a straight answer about whether white sturgeon can live their whole lives in freshwater. Is it important that they live in saltwater for a while, if so what would be the length of time they would need. Any advice or thoughts? Where should I look to get my hands on them?
Hi,
Seems like a cool idea. All three of those sturgeon species will do fine in freshwater. I believe all sturgeon are either anadromous or potamodromous. So unless you´re salting your pond and keeping Sterlets (a potamodromous species) for example you shouldn't have to worry.
About where to get them, I'm not sure.
Sterlets should be easy enough to get, however, I have heard of shops in the US that sell White sturgeon as Sterlets, probably to make them more attractive to people who want a smaller sturgeon. So if you know how to identify them you could try that, the problem with this is that they would probably sell them small (<30cm) which reduces their chances of survival when put in a pond or lake.
Another thing to consider is that fish at that size would take 2-4 years to become about a meter long, and probably 8-15 years to reach two meters.
I'm not sure where you could get Diamond sturgeons or Beluga sturgeons though.
I live in Europe where most commercially available species can be found if you look hard enough. Sturgeons as pond fish are more popular over here, which is another problem you might run into in the US, since they are harder to find in shops and farms generally won't sell small numbers of fish.
Would there be enough natural food for them in the lake? Or do you plan on feeding them somehow?
As Divemaster said, make sure the fish can't get into local waterways.
If you have any questions about species and requirements feel free to ask. I keep seven species and the White, Beluga and Diamond are among those.