Sterletus baerii (Brandt, 1869)

Freyhof, JÖrg, Yoğurtçuoğlu, Baran, Jouladeh-Roudbar, Arash & Kaya, Cüneyt, 2025, Handbook of Freshwater Fishes of West Asia, De Gruyter : 50

Sterletus baerii

Common name. Siberian sturgeon

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species of Acipenser and Sterletus in West Asia by: ● 20–49 fan-shaped gill rakers terminated by several tubercles / ○ lower lip interrupted in middle / ○ 10–20 dorsal scutes / ○ 32–62 lateral scutes / ○ 7–16 ventral scutes / ○ barbels not fimbriate / ○ tetraploid. Size usually up to 2000 mm TL and 210 kg.

Distribution. Siberia (from Ob to Kolyma drainages, Lake Baikal). Aquaculture has resulted in deliberate and accidental releases, especially in Caucasus. No known established populations in West Asia.

Habitat. Deep parts of large rivers with moderate to rapid currents. Spawns in main channel over stone-gravel or gravel-sand bottom in strong current.

Biology. Non-anadromous. Males first spawn at 11–24 years, females at 20–28 years (9–10 and 11–12 years, respectively, in Lena). Females spawn every 3–5 years and males every 2–3 years in May–June at 9–18°C.In Siberian part of range,there are both sedentary and migratory parts of populations. Migratory individuals feed in estuaries and migrate upstream to spawn. Before construction of dams on Ob, they migrated about 3000 km upstream. Spawning migration begins in autumn. Sedentary individuals inhabit middle and upper reaches of rivers and do not undertake long migrations.Feeds on a variety of benthic organisms,including crustaceans and chironomid larvae.

Conservation status. Non-native and not established; released for commercial fisheries or escaped from fish farms. CR in native range.

Further reading. Sokolov & Vasil’ev 1989b (biology).

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Sterletus baerii