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Specy

Beluga Sturgeon

Fish

The beluga sturgeon is a large, long-lived fish native to the Caspian, Black and Adriatic Sea basins, considered among the largest freshwater fish in the world, with historical records of individuals reaching over five metres in length and well over a thousand kilograms in weight, though such giants are now exceptionally rare. It has a shark-like body shape with rows of bony plates called scutes along its flanks rather than typical fish scales, and, like other sturgeon, an elongated snout and a toothless, tube-like mouth used to suck up prey such as fish and invertebrates from the riverbed and seafloor. Beluga sturgeon are anadromous, migrating from the sea into large rivers such as the Volga and Danube to spawn, and they can live for many decades, taking a very long time to reach sexual maturity, sometimes twenty years or more. The species has been pushed to the brink by centuries of intense fishing for its extremely valuable roe, sold as beluga caviar, combined with dam construction that has blocked access to its historic spawning rivers, and it is now classified as critically endangered.

Facts
Classification
Diet
Carnivore 2
System (Realm)
Freshwater 3
System (Realm)
Marine 3
Relationship to People
Hunted or Fished 4
Living or Extinct
Yes 1
Sourced to the subject's own accountDerived from this species' own Conservation Status: this atlas's IUCN category list has no Extinct value, so a set conservation-status is itself evidence of living status.
Identification
Distinguishing AppearanceSourced to the subject's own account
By maximum size the beluga sturgeon is the third-most-massive living species of bony fish. Like other sturgeon it has an elongated body, a heterocercal tail, a partially cartilaginous skeleton, naked skin, and longitudinal rows of bony scutes. 1
Comparison
CITES Appendix
Appendix II 2
Scientific NameSourced to the subject's own account
Huso huso 1
Conservation StatusSourced to the subject's own account
Critically Endangered 1
Connections

Child Taxon Of

Chordata, Taxa
Source GBIF Backbone Taxonomy: Huso huso

In Biome

Lake, Biomes
Source Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Huso huso
Open Ocean, Biomes
Source Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Huso huso
River, Biomes
Source Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Huso huso

In Ecosystem

Caspian Sea, Ecosystems
Source World Wildlife Fund
In the Other Atlases

Found In

Argentina

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Austria

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Azerbaijan

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Bulgaria

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

China

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Denmark

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Estonia

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Greece

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Hungary

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Kenya

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Latvia

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Lithuania

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Netherlands

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Norway

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Poland

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Romania

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Serbia

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Spain

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Sweden

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Turkey

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Ukraine

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Sources
1. Beluga Sturgeon (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia
  • Introduction
    The beluga (), also known as the beluga sturgeon or great sturgeon (Huso huso), is a species of sturgeon, which are anadromous fish of the family Acipenseridae of the order Acipenseriformes.
  • Introduction, conservation status
    IUCN classifies the beluga as critically endangered.
  • Description section, body plan
    Huso huso shows typical characteristics of other sturgeon, such as an elongated body, heterocercal tail, partially cartilaginous skeleton, naked skin and longitudinal series of scutes.
  • Infobox: status2
    CITES_A2
View the Source
2. Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Huso huso
Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
  • Primary Diet, Huso huso
    Primary Diet carnivore carnivore
  • Conservation Status: CITES
    CITES Appendix II
  • In Biome: Lake, Habitat Regions, biome: lakes and ponds
    lakes and ponds
  • In Biome: River, Habitat Regions, biome: rivers and streams
    rivers and streams
  • In Biome: Open Ocean, Habitat Regions, biome: pelagic
    pelagic pelagic
View the Source
3. GBIF Species API
GBIF Species APIView the Source
4. Beluga Sturgeon (Wikipedia)
Heavily fished for the female's valuable roe...overfishing and poachingView the Source
FishBase: Huso huso (FishBase)
FishBaseCITES
Quote, CITES
Appendix II: International trade monitored
View the Source
World Wildlife Fund
World Wildlife FundIn Ecosystem: Caspian SeaView the Source
GBIF Backbone Taxonomy: Huso huso
GBIF Backbone TaxonomyChild Taxon Of: Chordata, Taxon record
Quote, Child Taxon Of: Chordata, Taxon record
"phylum": "Chordata"
View the Source
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