Why Is the Sturgeon Still Endangered?
The sturgeon’s reproductive cycle and development are exceptionally long. Most wild species do not reach sexual maturity until they are around twelve years old.
In addition, the interval between spawning cycles ranges from three to seven years, depending on the species. As a result, although sturgeons produce large numbers of eggs, their overall reproductive rate remains low compared with that of most other fish.
A Vulnerable Giant
The sturgeon is a large and resilient fish. For centuries, its size and strength protected it from most natural threats. However, the arrival of humans profoundly disrupted this balance. Its impressive size and, above all, its highly predictable migratory behaviour made it an easy target. Pollution and the industrialisation of fishing further accelerated its decline.
Sturgeons have long faced the threat of extinction. By the end of the nineteenth century, American sturgeon populations were disappearing across the continent, from the East Coast to the Pacific, including the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. In France, the last significant sturgeon fisheries operated in the Gironde region during the 1960s. Native wild sturgeon gradually vanished, victims of overfishing.
From 1980 onwards, the accidental introduction of a plankton-eating invasive species triggered a major ecological crisis in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. This sudden disruption of the ecosystem further compromised the reproductive success of local sturgeon populations. At the same time, Chinese fisheries along the Sino-Soviet border underwent rapid industrialisation, leading to the depletion of their own sturgeon resources.
By the end of the 1980s, the Caspian Sea had become both the world's largest and its last major refuge for wild sturgeon populations.