Beluga sturgeon

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For other uses, see Beluga (disambiguation).

Beluga

Conservation status

Endangered (IUCN)

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Acipenseriformes
Family:	Acipenseridae
Genus:	Huso
Species:	H. huso

Binomial name

Huso huso
(Linnaeus, 1758)

The beluga sturgeon or European sturgeon (Huso huso) is a species of anadromous fish in the sturgeon family (Acipenseridae) of order Acipenseriformes. It is found primarily in the Caspian and Black Sea basins, and occasionally in the Adriatic Sea. Heavily fished for the female's valuable roe—known as beluga caviar—the beluga is a large (maximum 6 meters/19 feet), slow-growing and late-maturing fish that can live for 150 years.^{[citation needed]} The species' numbers have been greatly reduced by overfishing or poaching, prompting many governments to enact restrictions on its trade.

IUCN classifies the beluga as Endangered. It is a protected species listed in appendix III of the Bern Convention and its trade is restricted under CITES appendix II. The Mediterranean population is strongly protected under appendix II of the Bern Convention, prohibiting any intentional killing of these fish.

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has banned imports of beluga caviar and other beluga products from the Caspian Sea since October 7, 2005.

The Beluga is a large predator which feeds on other fish. Beluga sturgeons are fish, entirely unrelated to mammalian beluga whales. The word derives from the Russian word for white.

Unconfirmed reports suggest that Belugas may reach a length of up to 8.6m and weigh as much as 2,700 kilograms with a rectal diameter of sometimes several meters, depending on which continent it is from, making them the largest freshwater fish in the world, larger even than the Mekong giant catfish or the pirarucu. At this mass, the Beluga would be even heavier than the Ocean Sunfish, generally recognized as the largest of bony fishes. Nevertheless, some scientists still consider the Mekong giant catfish to be the largest freshwater fish, owing to sturgeons' ability to survive in seawater.

The beluga travels up freshwater rivers to breed, as do all sturgeons. In this manner sturgeons are sometimes likened to sea fish, though most scientists still consider them river fish.

Beluga caviar is considered a delicacy worldwide. The meat of the beluga, on the other hand, is not particularly renowned.

Humans adversely affect Beluga populations by harvesting beluga caviar. When in open ocean, the beluga's predators include killer whales, sharks and perhaps sperm whale.

While the beluga rules the rivers that it lives, being larger than most species of crocodile, when young, it is potential prey for brown bears, crocodiles and adult sturgeons. In egg stage, it has even more enemies, as it is possible that, like tadpoles and sharks, the baby belugas may eat beluga eggs. Despite its huge size, there has been no case of a beluga attacking or killing a human. Even human property (handbags, clothes, boats etc) have not been known to be attacked by belugas, regardless of the beluga's size. The smaller pirarucu has been known to eat children, though this is rare. However, it is also true belugas don't eat prey large in comparison to their body size; humans may be too large, and their babies are usually under their protection. The same applies for other sturgeons.