This is problematic because white sturgeon eggs are adhesive. The dam’s presence has forced the fish to spawn in areas with a sandier river bottom than they are used to. Even after closing operation in 1975, Libby Dam has had a negative effect on white sturgeon populations of the Kootenai River. These long-lived fish can afford to live a very relaxed lifestyle!Įven though white sturgeon as a whole are very common, some populations are under threat and classified as endangered. Unlike salmon, white sturgeon do not die once the breeding season has ended, and while they may choose to migrate back to nearshore ocean waters, many remain in freshwater until it is time to breed again. A pregnant female sturgeon will release thousands of eggs into the water, which the males fertilize. Their life begins in inland rivers, after their parents congregate upstream in order to reproduce. White sturgeon don’t start out as giants, though. It is little wonder then that some people refer to sturgeons as “living fossils.” Sister species of the white sturgeon have been found as fossils alongside dinosaurs such as Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops. Not only do these fish live for a long time, but their lineage is quite long as well. They never stop growing throughout their long lives, turning them into true river monsters.īut don’t worry sturgeon do not attack people, and they prefer to eat smaller fish, like anchovies, shad, salmon, and lamprey. These fish commonly live 80 years or so, but they often exceed this at up to 100 years.
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Not that it has many! Its size alone keeps it safe from most would-be attackers.īut how do white sturgeon reach such massive sizes? The answer has to do with their incredibly long lifespan. Instead, it has five rows of scutes running down its body that protect it from predators. Interestingly, it is its cousin, the beluga sturgeon of the Caspian and Black Sea, that takes the prize for largest freshwater fish of all it rivals even the great white shark in size, maxing out at over 3,400 pounds in weight! The white sturgeon’s long, cylindrical body is pale gray on top with an even paler underside.
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#Sturgeon ufish idaho full#
At full size, measurements of 12 to nearly 20 feet in length are common, and they can weigh as much as 1,388 pounds! Little wonder then that these are the largest freshwater fish in North America, the seventh largest in the world. The white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) is a monster among freshwater fishes. But if you’re really fortunate, you might come across the largest and one of the oldest residents of Idaho’s waterways: the white sturgeon. You might have an encounter with a lamprey. If you explore the rivers of the Idaho Panhandle, chances are that you might spy a trout, catfish, or maybe even a northern pike.