Atlantic sturgeon: Difference between revisions

{{forFor|the Atlantic sturgeon from Europe (except the Baltic region)|European sea sturgeon}}

| status = NTVU

| status_ref = <ref name=IUCN>{{cite iucn | authorauthor1=St. PierreHilton, RE.|author2=Fox, (UD.S. Fish & Wildlife Service) | year=2006 2022| title=''Acipenser oxyrinchus '' ssp. '' oxyrinchus'' | urlpage=https:/e.T243A95763750|doi=10.2305/wwwIUCN.iucnredlistUK.org/details/243/0 2022-1.RLTS.T243A95763750.en| access-date=239 FebruaryJuly 20092023}}</ref>

The '''Atlantic sturgeon''' ('''''Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus''''') is a member of the family [[Acipenseridae]], and, along with other sturgeon, it is sometimes considered a [[living fossil]]. The Atlantic sturgeon is one of two [[subspecies]] of ''[[Acipenser oxyrinchus|A. oxyrinchus]]'', the other being the [[Gulf sturgeon]] (''A. o. desotoi''). The main range of the Atlantic sturgeon is in eastern North America, extending from [[New Brunswick]], Canada, to the eastern coast of [[Florida]], United States. A [[Disjunct distribution|disjunct]] population occurs in the [[Baltic region]] of Europe (today only through a reintroduction project). The Atlantic sturgeon was in great abundance when the first European settlers came to North America, but has since declined due to [[overfishing]] and, [[water pollution]], and habitat impediments such as dams.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Fisheries|first=NOAA|date=2021-01-19|title=Atlantic Sturgeon {{!}} NOAA Fisheries|url=https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/atlantic-sturgeon|access-date=2021-05-14|website=NOAA|language=en}}</ref> It is considered threatened, endangered, and even locally extinct in many of its original [[habitat]]s. The fish can reach 60 years of age, {{convert|15|ft|m|abbr=on}} in length and over {{convert|800|lb|kg|abbr=on}} in weight.<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Schultz | first1 = Ken | title = Ken Schultz's Field Guide to Freshwater Fish | publisher = John Wiley & Sons | year = 2004 | isbn = 978-0-471-62865-1}}</ref>

Atlantic sturgeon under six years of age stay in the [[brackish]] water where they were born before moving into the ocean. They may be {{convert|3|-|5|ft|abbr=on}} long at this stage. In areas where [[shortnose sturgeon]] are also present, the adults of that species can be, and historically were for centuries, confused with immature Atlantic sturgeon. When mature, they travel upstream to spawn. The females may lay 800,000 to 3.75 million eggs in a single year, doing so every two to six years. After laying their eggs, females travel back downstream, but males may remain upstream after spawning until forced to return downstream by the increasingly cold water. They may even return to the ocean, where they stay near the [[coastline]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2021}}

The species is also known for its occasional 'leaping' behavior, during which the fish will emerge completely out of the water in a forceful motion that can be hazardous to anything unlucky enough to be struck.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dnr2.maryland.gov/Fisheries/Pages/Fish-Facts.aspx?fishname=Atlantic%20Sturgeon|title=Maryland Fish Facts|work=Maryland.gov|access-date=March 28, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/local/2015/07/04/lake-city-florida-girl-killed-by-jumping-sturgeon-boat/29701255/|title=Florida girl killed by jumping sturgeon|work=FloridaToday.com|date=6 July 2015|orig-date=Originally published 4 July 2015|access-date=21 March 28,2023|agency=Associated 2017Press}}</ref> The exact reason why sturgeon leap remains unknown, although some scholars believe leaping is a form of group communication. In one study, of a population of the species in the Suwannee river in northwestern Florida, leaping behavior was found to vary seasonally, with the highest frequency of occurrence in June.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Sulak|first1=K. J.|last2=Edwards|first2=R. E.|last3=Hill|first3=G. W.|last4=Randall|first4=M. T.|title=Why do sturgeons jump? Insights from acoustic investigations of the Gulf sturgeon in the Suwannee River, Florida, USA|journal=Journal of Applied Ichthyology|date=17 December 2002|volume=18|issue=4–6|pages=617–620|doi=10.1046/j.1439-0426.2002.00401.x|doi-access=free}}</ref>

In February 2012, the Atlantic sturgeon was listed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Service under the [[Endangered Species Act]] (ESA).<ref>{{cite news|title=Atlantic sturgeon listed as endangered species|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/atlantic-sturgeon-listed-as-endangered-species/2012/02/01/gIQARbAmiQ_story.html|worknewspaper=Washington Post|access-date=8 February 2012|first=Juliet|last=Eilperin|date=1 February 2012}}</ref> Four [[distinct population segment]]s (DPSs) were listed as endangered (New York Bight, Chesapeake Bay, Carolina, and South Atlantic) while one DPS was listed as threatened (Gulf of Maine).<ref name=NMFS>NMFS. ''Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Final Listing Determinations for Two Distinct Population Segments of Atlantic Sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus) in the Southeast''.''Federal Register;; v77, (February 6, 2012), 5914-5982.</ref> As of this writing (July 22, 2015) there are concerns that the construction of the bridge to replace the Tappan Zee connecting Rockland County to Westchester County in New York, in the Hudson River, may impact the sturgeon's [[ecological stability]].<ref name = NYT72215 >[https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/22/nyregion/group-petitions-to-save-a-prehistoric-fish-from-modern-construction.html "Group Petitions to Save a Prehistoric Fish From Modern Construction"] article by Lisa W. Foderaro in ''The New York Times'' July 21, 2015</ref>

The now nearly extinct sturgeon population in the [[Baltic Sea]] area belongs to the Atlantic sturgeon ''A. oxyrinchus'' rather than to the European species ''[[European sea sturgeon|A. sturio]]'' as had been thought. ''A. oxyrinchus'' migrated to the Baltic about 1300 years ago and displaced the native ''A. sturio''.<ref>{{cite journal | pmc=2527320| last1=Ludwig| first1=A| title=Tracing the first steps of American sturgeon pioneers in Europe| journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology| volume=8| pages=221| last2=Arndt| first2=U| last3=Lippold| first3=S| last4=Benecke| first4=N| last5=Debus| first5=L| last6=King| first6=T. L.| last7=Matsumura| first7=S| doi=10.1186/1471-2148-8-221| pmid=18664258| year=2008| doi-access=free}}</ref>

IUCN: [[NearVulnerable Threatenedspecies|Vulnerable]]<ref name=IUCN/>

The American Fisheries Society considers it endangered in all stream systems except conservation-dependent in the Hudson, Delaware, and Altamaha Rivers.{{Citation needed|date=March 2021}}

The Atlantic sturgeon of the [[Delaware River]] are listed under the ESA as part of the New York Bight [[distinct population segment]] (DPS),<ref name="noaafisheries">{{cite web|url=https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/atlantic-sturgeon|title=Species Directory: Atlantic Sturgeon|website=NOAA Fisheries|date=30 January 2023|access-date=21 March 2023}}</ref><ref name="fr77">{{Federal Register|77|5880}}</ref> which includes all Atlantic sturgeon that spawn in watersheds draining to coastal waters from Chatham, Massachusetts, to the Delaware-Maryland border on Fenwick Island,<ref name="fr77"/>{{rp|5881}} the Chesapeake Bay DPS, the Carolina DPS and the South Atlantic DPS, while the Gulf of Maine DPS is listed threatened.<ref name="noaafisheries"/><ref name="fr77"/> Canadian-origin populations are not currently listed under the U.S. ESA.<ref name="noaafisheries"/> NMFS believes fewer than 300 spawning adults are in the Delaware River population; just over 100 years ago the estimated population was 180,000 spawning adult females.{{Citation needed|date=March 2021}}

Atlantic sturgeon are now a threatened species. Management of the species is largely based on the restriction of fishing of the species. This helps limit fishing mortalities of sturgeon to bycatch.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fisheries |first=NOAA |date=2022-10-27 |title=Action Plan to Reduce Atlantic Sturgeon Bycatch in Federal Large Mesh Gillnet Fisheries {{!}} NOAA Fisheries |url=https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/document/action-plan-reduce-atlantic-sturgeon-bycatch-federal-large-mesh-gillnet-fisheries |access-date=2023-11-17 |website=NOAA |language=en}}</ref>

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*[http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7025.html New York State Department of Environmental Conservation - New York's Sturgeon] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160829133237/http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7025.html |date=2016-08-29 }}

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{{Acipenseriformes|state=expanded}}