sturgeon

[Peter McFarlane]

My sturgeon is the coolest fish I've ever kept, when I got him he was about 8" and now he must be about 36", I've had him around 3-4 years.

Very friendly and sociable, loves being stroked and actively comes to your hand as soon as he see's it.

Very active, constantly swimming and eats like a beast.

My pond isn't huge, about 8ft x 8ft and 5ft deep, no heating and it's really cold in England, the pond has frozen over with ice many times, no problems with him or the koi though.

Already I'm having to think about building a bigger pond to accommodate him, this isn't the kind of fish you can squeeze into any sort of tank/pond. Because it's such an active fish and always swimming it really does need a lot of space.

A cool fish, but suitable for a monster pond rather then a monster tank I think.

Pictures are a bit crappy as he's always moving.

 

[killerlexus]

what da heck.. all this reading and 2 stupid blurry pics.. cant some one post some decent pics of the fish in a tank.

 

[Moontanman]

Great looking fish, it just inforces what I like the most about keeping big fish, they can become pets not just a display. Big fish often get to the point where you can pet them and interact with them in many ways. LETS HEAR IT FOR BIG FISH... HOOORAAY!

 

[Ang]

i was at my lfs today and i saw a pretty brutal looking fish and the owner said it was a california sturgeon. all the info i can find on sturgeon relates to fishing. anyone keep em? all i know about em is that the owner said they get massive

out of curiosity what LFS?

I saw some at the one down the street too. Fish Haven.

I cant imagine many people being able to house such fish unless they have a pond.

 

[zennzzo]

Oh, I have respect for all God's critters. Just not for humans.
Does that sound snotty? I don't mean it to be snotty.
But hey, pretty much anything that comes out of me is covered in mucous.
No matter how hard I wipe, it just keeps coming and coming. Pardon me.

I work in a beef packing plant, shipping department. I could make more money on the kill floor, but I can't handle it.
And I only lasted 3 days in the rendering plant. What a mountain of rotting death.
But shipping...it's all in boxes, I can almost ignore it.

Yes, some can argue that all creatures were created for us. By God or evolution.
If by evolution, then we are top dog and can kill and abuse indiscriminately, and shame on us.
If by God, then He said to husband. Animal husbandry. To use, yes. But also to love and respect. This we do not do, and shame on us.
Yes, keeping an animal in best conditions of captivity is better than in worst conditions of captivity.
But lets not pretend we are saints and angels. Lets not pretend we are doing anything out of love and respect for the creatures we keep for our entertainment.
That is what riles me. The hypocrisy of man.
Take a good hard look at the things we do, just because we can. Do not pretend you nor I am wholesome. Or loving, or respectful, or respectable.
To husband these wild things is to leave them wild. And to leave their wilderness wild.
To cadge them at all, no matter the velvety cadge, is itself an act of violence and disrespect.
And we deserve far more for that than plain words of truth.
It is one thing to use for food or other necessity, when we respectfully acknowledge what life they give to us.
It is another to cadge for callus entertainment.
That is not animal husbandry.
That is the hypocrisy of man.

The very least we should offer them, is honesty.

 

[Moontanman]

out of curiosity what LFS?

I saw some at the one down the street too. Fish Haven.

I cant imagine many people being able to house such fish unless they have a pond.

Hmmm, what site are you posting on? Monsterfish keepers? Ring a bell? Actually I agree with you to some extent but even a sturgeon will not grow as big as you think, I have it on relatively good authority that even the huge species of sturgeon will top out quite small in an aquarium, "Never underestimate the power of cool water and (or) confused light cycles in the growth of a fish" this was told to me by someone who is in charge of fish at a state owned aquarium. Having said that I am still promoting the keeping of smaller sturgeon species like the shovelnose sturgeon of the Mississippi river system. It's maximum size is around 36", usually smaller , around 24 to 30 inches and in an aquarium it usually maxes out at around 18 inches or so. Shovelnose are also a much more agile slender fish and adapt better to tank life and warm temps than other available sturgeon. Unfortunately the sturgeons now for sale are usually giant species capable of several meters in length and hundreds of pounds in weight. But I was told that in a tank after a couple of years they could be expected to still be almost as small as a yearling fish. For a shovelnose this could be quite small.

 

[Peter McFarlane]

what da heck.. all this reading and 2 stupid blurry pics.. cant some one post some decent pics of the fish in a tank.

It seems your missing the point of this whole topic. This isn't a "show your sturgeon" thread.

It's discussing whether on not it's right to keep a sturgeon in a tank. In terms of the fish being a constant swimmer who deserves a certain amount of space.

If your after pretty pictures go and google sturgeon


Moontanman thanks for your comments, I agree with you 100%

 

[Moontanman]

It seems your missing the point of this whole topic. This isn't a "show your sturgeon" thread.

It's discussing whether on not it's right to keep a sturgeon in a tank. In terms of the fish being a constant swimmer who deserves a certain amount of space.

If your after pretty pictures go and google sturgeon


Moontanman thanks for your comments, I agree with you 100%

Thanks, I would like to say that most if not all of the large species of sturgeon are somewhat less than ideal for a square tank life style. I'm not saying they might not work but I prefer my fish to be a bit happier than simply existing. A shovelnose sturgeon comes close to being the only sturgeon you are likely to get than is not a large heavy thick stiff fish that requires more of a pond type environment. There are other sturgeon that might do well in a square tank but they are either endangered or not captive bred and keeping a non captive bred sturgeon would be a shame even if it wasn't illegal in most if not all places.

 

[Death Pony]

Very cool sturgeon Pete!!!

 

[Spankbelly]

Very cool sturgeon Pete!!!

They do look pretty cool. I'm almost convinced to get one.
Do you think 20 gallons will be enough?
When it grows out, I'll just drop it head first in my rain barrel.
If it makes it past four feet, I'll suspend it by rope to the tail.
All that gravity will do wonders for growth rate!
I'm going to have the biggest captive sturgeon ever!
Remind me, what's the largest species I can buy?
Legal or illegal.
And how much rope will I need?
Can you recommend a softer rope than nylon? Something fish friendly.
For God's sake don't say silk, or even cotton.
Money doesn't grow on trees you know!
But maybe...just maybe...fish do.