Sturgeon info

[synodontisjack]

Ok haven't posted on this thread in a while:
Stellatus sturgeon (acipenser stellatus)
my personal favourites, stellatus is a very beautiful and can be distinguished from gueldenstaedtii by its longer nose which takes up almost a quarter of its body. Care is pretty much the same as gueldenstaedtii but it grows slightly smaller and tollerates warmer water slightly better but this is still a no go. a captive size of 48" should be accepted as average with a pond of 18x8 foot being a minimum. Again it enjoys similar foods and water parameters etc to the diamond and grows at a slower rate of around 1" a month. This species also does not lose the white colouration like the diamond as it gains size.

 

[Oolichan]

yup they are a big fish and you can still expect 10ft from a captive one.

White sturgeon live as long as 100 years. In theory you could raise a 10' fish but a fish that old would be 50-70 years old. That's a big commitment.

Growth rates; they grow fast for the first 12 -18 inches than slow down a lot - 1.5 inches a year growth is not uncommon. a 36" fish can be 15 years old.

IMO there isn't any pond or enclosure that can hold these fish properly. They are anadromous (sea going freshwater fish) and in nature have ranges over 100KM. Washington fish have been tagged in Alaska.

That said they are being farmed for food on the West Coast successfully.

FWIW my info comes from sportfishing stugeon radio tagging studies on the Fraser river that I've been involved in.

 

[Dragonflyx2]

wow great info. I have heard that there are some in a lake near me but it's just been rumored. It has sparked my interest in this big fish but I have never found this much info on them thanks.

 

[synodontisjack]

I'm gonna update this within the next week and i'd appreciate if it was made a sticky, theres alot of crap info about sturgeon floating around and people who don't know squat and have never kept them giving incorrect advice

 

[BIG_ONE]

White Sturgeon, yes...they enter brackish and freshwater yearly. Especially when they are old enough to spawn.
I wouldn't recommend keeping a white sturgeon, I'll go with a much smaller species as these guys gets so dang humongous and takes for ever to grow. Not sure if anyone can even out lived these white sturgeon(besides killing it) as record dated they can live over 150 years.

Im a white sturgeon fisherman myself, and white sturgeon wouldn't be a good choice. They demand cool water, warm up to 75 will do fine but the cooler the better it is. Also guys, if you happened to buy a white sturgeon...don't feed them other fish food that they are not naturally food for them. Most of the reason why they don't live long. Feed them nightcrawlers, clams(de-shell if under 35"), ghost shrimp aka sand shrimp, grass shrimp, crawdad, herring, shad, smelt, pileworm aka ragworm, blood worm(not the one for feeding most aquarium fish). And I would recommend going to the baitshop for them. As to my founding, these are all natural sturgeon food as I found in their stomach when I bring them home from a sturgeon fishing trip.
And overall, no these sturgeon are not being bred for food, they are being bred to increase population mortality. They are in a danger zone, but still plenty enough to be fished...1 per person, 3 per year as of California Sturgeon Reg.

And to WARNED you guys, sturgeon is a powerful, I mean POWERFUL jumper...they can jump like Mako Sharks, a crazy powerful leap into the air. Keep in mind...

 

[synodontisjack]

White Sturgeon, yes...they enter brackish and freshwater yearly. Especially when they are old enough to spawn.
I wouldn't recommend keeping a white sturgeon, I'll go with a much smaller species as these guys gets so dang humongous and takes for ever to grow. Not sure if anyone can even out lived these white sturgeon(besides killing it) as record dated they can live over 150 years.

Im a white sturgeon fisherman myself, and white sturgeon wouldn't be a good choice. They demand cool water, warm up to 75 will do fine but the cooler the better it is. Also guys, if you happened to buy a white sturgeon...don't feed them other fish food that they are not naturally food for them. Most of the reason why they don't live long. Feed them nightcrawlers, clams(de-shell if under 35"), ghost shrimp aka sand shrimp, grass shrimp, crawdad, herring, shad, smelt, pileworm aka ragworm, blood worm(not the one for feeding most aquarium fish). And I would recommend going to the baitshop for them. As to my founding, these are all natural sturgeon food as I found in their stomach when I bring them home from a sturgeon fishing trip.
And overall, no these sturgeon are not being bred for food, they are being bred to increase population mortality. They are in a danger zone, but still plenty enough to be fished...1 per person, 3 per year as of California Sturgeon Reg.

And to WARNED you guys, sturgeon is a powerful, I mean POWERFUL jumper...they can jump like Mako Sharks, a crazy powerful leap into the air. Keep in mind...

thanks thats a great bit of advice, unfortunatley we do still see white for sale from time to time and even beluga's.

 

[Yanbbrox]

White Sturgeon, yes...they enter brackish and freshwater yearly. Especially when they are old enough to spawn.
I wouldn't recommend keeping a white sturgeon, I'll go with a much smaller species as these guys gets so dang humongous and takes for ever to grow. Not sure if anyone can even out lived these white sturgeon(besides killing it) as record dated they can live over 150 years.

Im a white sturgeon fisherman myself, and white sturgeon wouldn't be a good choice. They demand cool water, warm up to 75 will do fine but the cooler the better it is. Also guys, if you happened to buy a white sturgeon...don't feed them other fish food that they are not naturally food for them. Most of the reason why they don't live long. Feed them nightcrawlers, clams(de-shell if under 35"), ghost shrimp aka sand shrimp, grass shrimp, crawdad, herring, shad, smelt, pileworm aka ragworm, blood worm(not the one for feeding most aquarium fish). And I would recommend going to the baitshop for them. As to my founding, these are all natural sturgeon food as I found in their stomach when I bring them home from a sturgeon fishing trip.
And overall, no these sturgeon are not being bred for food, they are being bred to increase population mortality. They are in a danger zone, but still plenty enough to be fished...1 per person, 3 per year as of California Sturgeon Reg.

And to WARNED you guys, sturgeon is a powerful, I mean POWERFUL jumper...they can jump like Mako Sharks, a crazy powerful leap into the air. Keep in mind...

Great post, good info

 

[Moontanman]

White sturgeon are good to eat too!

 

[oscar n redtail cat]

idk much bout the fish but i love the caviar lol. ive always wanted one they seem cool

you do no to get this caviar they grow the sturgeon to 11 years old and then kill it ! tro get the eggs out what a shame i think on the fish.

 

[Yanbbrox]

you do no to get this caviar they grow the sturgeon to 11 years old and then kill it ! tro get the eggs out what a shame i think on the fish.

Hence the expense