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poachers. The main controls aimed at increasing the abundance of this rare 
species include increased protection of the spawning rivers and continued 
activity in the area of fi sh-farming.
Siberian sturgeon  (A. baerii) lives in Siberian rivers from the Ob to 
Kolyma and in Lake Baikal.
Apart from the basin of the Ob with the Irtysh and Yenisei rivers, it occurs 
further to the east, up to Kolyma River and in Baikal Lake.
The Siberian sturgeon diff ers from the sterlet by having fewer side scutes 
(not more than 50); from the Russian sturgeon, to which the Siberian sturgeon 
is close, it diff ers with its fan-shaped gill rakers and sharper snout. However, 
the shape of its snout, just as with the sterlet, varies widely, and blunt-nosed 
individuals occur in the same areas as the sharp-nosed.
Sizes of the Siberian sturgeon are diff erent in diff erent basins. 180-200 kg 
sturgeons have been encountered in the Ob and Baikal; this fi gure was up 
to 100 kg and up to 60 kg - for the Yenisei and Lena rivers respectively. The 
average commercial weight of Ob sturgeon is 15-16 kg, compared to 4-6 and 
2-3 kg for Yenisei and Lena sturgeon respectively.
The Siberian sturgeon is a catadromous fi sh. It fatt ens in the estuaries 
of Siberian Rivers and travels many hundreds of kilometers upstream for 
spawning: 2,500 km in the Ob up to the Novosibirsk hydroelectric power 
plant facilities; 1,500 km in the Yenisei and 500-700 km in the Lena. This 
migration lasts for more than a year and is interrupted by wintering in river 
beds (early-runs). Apart from anadromous forms, the Siberian sturgeon also 
has non-migratory species that reside in most rivers. It has been observed 
that sexually mature catadromous sturgeons going upstream to spawning 
grounds are gray or smoke-gray, while the resident sturgeon are usually 
gray-brown. Similar diff erences in the coloration of these two forms have 
been detected for Amur sturgeons. The Siberian sturgeon lives in very harsh 
conditions, and grows more slowly than the Russian sturgeon, reaching 

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maturity quite late: males - not before 15-18 and females - at the age of 18-
20. The Lena sturgeon matures more quickly: it reaches sexual maturity 
earlier (males - in 11-13 and females - in 13-15 years) but it is small in size, 
just like a sterlet (length of about 70 cm and weight of 1.5-2 kg). A few 
thousand years ago the Siberian sturgeon entered Lake Baikal (probably 
from the Yenisei basin through the lower Angara) and formed a unique 
fl uvio-lacustrine form that fatt ens along the coasts of this lake (up to 150-
200 m depth) and goes to the large tributaries to spawn (Selenga, Barguzin, 
Upper Angara). The main spawning river is the Selenga where the fi sh go 
1,000 km upstream.
The sturgeons in Siberian rivers spawn in the summertime - in June or 
July; the Baikal sturgeon spawns a bit earlier - during late May or early June. 
Its fertility diff ers between water bodies: 174,000 to 420,000 eggs in the Ob, 
79,000 to 250,000 in the Yenisei and 16,000 to 110,000 in the Lena.
The sturgeons feed on various bott om-dwellers: larvae of chironomids, 
trichopterans, mayfl ies, amphipods, freshwater shrimps, worms, mollusks, 
and less frequently fi sh. The sturgeons do not cease feeding even in the 
wintertime under the ice. The Siberian sturgeon is very undemanding and 
has great potential for growth. The Lena sturgeons raised in the warm-water 
farms located near power plants are growing 7-9 times faster than in natural 
conditions.
Genus Beluga  (Huso) - apart from the aforementioned beluga this 
includes one more species Kaluga sturgeon (H. dauricus), which is found only 
in the Amur River basin. It never goes out to the sea from the Amur estuary.
Common name: tsinhuan-yui (Chinese).
Kaluga sturgeon (Huso dauricus)
The Kaluga sturgeon is one of the largest freshwater fi she in the world, 
reaching a length of 3.7 m and weight of 380  kg; in the past, individual 

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specimens over 5m long had been caught. The regular commercial weight of 
Kaluga sturgeon is 50 to 100 kg. The highest reported age is 55 years.
The Kaluga sturgeon reaches sexual maturity at 18-22 years. Lives for 
48-55 years and reaches 3.7-5.6m length and might have weight of 382 kg 
and above. Spawns predominantly in spring.  Average fertility is 1.5 million 
eggs.
The Kaluga sturgeon is a predator. As early as its fi rst year of life, it feeds 
on small fi shes and invertebrates, and the larger specimens eat even Siberian 
and humpback salmons. Instances of cannibalism peculiar to this fi sh have 
recently increased. 
Subfamily of shovelnose sturgeons
(Scaphirhynchinae)
The shovelnose sturgeons belong to the family Acipenseridae and appear 
to represent a relic of the fauna of the prehistoric world. Indications of this 
are, on one hand, its strange shape, which resembles the shape of antediluvian 
creatures, and on the other hand, the fact that it exists in the Amu Darya and 
the Mississippi rivers - water bodies of two distant continents separated by 
a huge ocean. This fact confi rms the assumption that these continents were 
most probably interconnected during one of the geological epochs.
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  The subfamily Scaphirhynchinae  contains some
unique types of fi sh, which are well adapted to living in 
a fast stream of water that carries a large quantity of 
suspended particles. The shovelnose sturgeons have 
very small eyes, oft en almost completely covered with 
skin, and eyesight does not play an important role in the 
lives of these fi sh. On the other hand, their sense of touch 
is well developed, for which they use long barbels and, 
apparently, the entire lower surface of the snout. Its big 
bony scutes, which form a kind of mail, provide good 
protection against mechanical damage and solid particles 
carried by the stream. The fl at shovel-like snout helps 
the  fi sh to retain stability in the fast stream: the above 
current running forces the fi sh to the bott om.
The shovelnose sturgeons are widespread in two regions of the globe: 
American shovelnose sturgeons (Scaphirhynchinae) live in the Mississippi 

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