European sea sturgeon.

Where to find it.

Formerly most large rivers of western Europe and the Mediterranean. The last wild population depends on the Gironde–Garonne–Dordogne system in France.

Also known as Common sturgeon, Atlantic sturgeon (old usage).

A closer look.

An elongated, shark-like body armoured with five rows of bony plates (scutes) instead of scales. The pointed snout carries four barbels in front of a toothless, protrusible mouth.

How it lives.

Adults live at sea along the coast and enter large rivers to spawn. They search the bottom with their barbels and suck up prey.

The next generation.

Matures late, after more than ten years, and spawns over gravel in fast-flowing river reaches. The last confirmed natural spawning in the Garonne was in 1994; the population is now sustained by hatchery releases.

Conservation

Critically Endangered. Overfishing for meat and caviar, dams and river engineering wiped out nearly every population. Breeding and release programmes run in France and Germany.

Critically Endangered — global IUCN assessment dated 15 September 2020. Regional populations can have a different status. View the Red List record ↗

In the margins.

• Sturgeons are an ancient group; their basic body plan has changed little over a very long time.
• The scutes along the back and sides are why Bloch’s engraver gave it such a beaded outline.