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Habitats for the Atlantic sturgeons in Russia
Author(s) -
Popov Igor
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
aquatic conservation: marine and freshwater ecosystems
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.95
H-Index - 77
eISSN - 1099-0755
pISSN - 1052-7613
DOI - 10.1002/aqc.2716
Subject(s) - overfishing , fishery , endangered species , sturgeon , habitat , geography , baltic sea , ecology , oceanography , biology , fish <actinopterygii> , geology
The critically endangered Atlantic sturgeon, Acipenser sturio , inhabited the Russian section of the Baltic Sea basin until recent times. Eight rivers were indicated as their habitats in local literature. The Atlantic surgeon disappeared in Russia because of overfishing, not because of habitat loss. Nowadays, potential spawning grounds for sturgeons occur in six rivers of the Russian section of the Baltic Sea basin. The largest river (Neva) is not blocked by dams and the whole river provides the ecological requirements of sturgeons on a stretch 75 km long. Restocking of other sturgeon species in Russia demonstrated that the release of reared fishes into the sea is ineffective, whereas the release into rivers could result in successful acclimatization. Recent climatic changes are rather favourable for sturgeon restocking in the Baltic Sea area. The main problem for the restoration of sturgeon populations is the intensive fishery.