Sturgeon are truly fascinating fish that have been around for over 120 million years Their unique appearance and diet make them stand out from other species In this article, we’ll take a closer look at what sturgeon eat and some interesting facts about their eating habits.
There are 27 different species of sturgeon, all belonging to the Acipenseridae family. Sturgeon are among the most primitive fish species still in existence, earning them the nickname “living fossils.”
These large fish have five rows of bony plates known as scutes running along their bodies. Their mouths are located on the underside of their heads and they have sensory barbels between their snouts and mouths to help them find food.
Sturgeon are anadromous meaning they migrate between saltwater and freshwater. They spend most of their time in coastal waters but travel into rivers and estuaries to spawn.
The Sturgeon Diet – What Do They Eat?
Sturgeon are benthic feeders, meaning they eat food found at the bottom of rivers, estuaries and coastal waters. Their diet consists mainly of:
- Aquatic macroinvertebrates like insect larvae
- Freshwater mussels
- Snails
- Crustaceans
- Small fish
They do not scavenge or eat decomposing organisms, preferring to eat only fresh, live food.
Sturgeon locate food by brushing their barbels along the bottom. They then extend their protrusible mouths to vacuum up prey from the sediment. After swallowing their food whole, sturgeon use their muscular stomachs to crush and digest it.
Interesting Facts About Sturgeon Feeding Habits
There are some intriguing aspects of how and what sturgeon eat:
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They lack teeth, instead relying on strong stomach muscles to break down food.
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Their mouths allow them to suck up prey like vacuums, along with rocks and sediment that they later expel.
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Sturgeon do not feed every day. They can go multiple days between meals.
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Hatchery-raised sturgeon prefer live food and refuse dead organisms.
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Different sturgeon species may prefer certain prey. For example, the green sturgeon favors crabs and shrimp.
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Sturgeon appetite and metabolism increase with water temperature. They eat more in warmer conditions.
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Young sturgeon eat more frequently than adults. Adults in cold water may eat just once a week.
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Food availability influences growth rate. With ample prey, sturgeon can gain over 2 pounds per month.
Sturgeon have a unique benthic diet focused on live invertebrates and fish. Their anatomy equips them to vacuum up food from river and ocean floors. While all sturgeon are well-adapted bottom feeders, their specific diets can vary between species and environments. These primitive fish continue exhibiting fascinating feeding behaviors perfected over millions of years of evolution.
How Are Sturgeons Built?
Sturgeon, like most fish, use their fins for swimming. The dorsal and anal fins are used to stabilize the fish. The pectoral and pelvic fins are on the sides of the body and help you turn, back up, stop, and keep your balance. This tail fin moves back and forth like a boat propeller, moving the fish through the water. The caudal fin on sturgeon is heterocercal, just like sharks!.
Sturgeon have five rows of bony scutes along the length of their body. Scutes are a modified scale. They can help serve as protection for the fish like armor and make sturgeon distinct from other fish.
Fish breathe oxygen from the water, similar to how humans breathe oxygen from the air. The gills on sturgeon are found just behind the head and under a gill flap. When water comes into their mouths, it goes over their gills, which remove oxygen from the water. This is similar to how our lungs remove oxygen from the air we breathe.
Sturgeon do not have teeth! They suck up food like a vacuum with their protrusible mouth. After swallowing food whole, their muscular stomach crushes it into smaller pieces for digestion. Some prey that sturgeon eat are polychaetes (worms), mollusks, and crustaceans. Between the tip of their snout and their mouth, there are four barbels that they use to find food.
Sturgeon Mouth and Barbels
Native Americans of North America fished for sturgeon using spears, lassos, clubs and weirs. Some sturgeon have been known to jump out of the water and even into boats. Because they were known to be curious fish, the Housatonic Native Americans would fish at night while holding a torch above the water. These fish were so interested that they would swim right up to the surface to see what was going on. The fisherman would hit them on the head with a club or an axe when they got too close. He would then drag the stunned fish into the boat. Native American groups in North America called the August full moon “Sturgeon Moon” because there were lots of sturgeon at that time.
Sturgeon were found in great numbers when European settlers first arrived in North America. Some stories said that the James River had so many sturgeon that you could walk across it on their backs. In the late 1700’s George Washington made recreational sport of fishing for sturgeon on the Potomac River. These fish were very strong and big, so when fishermen caught one with a lasso, they would brace themselves in the boat for what they called a “Nantucket sleigh ride.” ” However, it was not always fun and games with sturgeon on the Potomac. A Continental Army officer was crossing the Potomac when a sturgeon jumped into his boat, hit him, and killed him. The sturgeon broke both of his legs.
Sturgeon were considered to be a delicacy and a “royal” fish back in England. To be a “royal” fish meant that the king had first rights to any sturgeon that were caught. The colonists were wary of the Native Americans who ate these scute-armored fish, and they refused to eat the sturgeon even though they were “royal” in Europe. Even so, they had harsh winters with little food, and there were a lot of these big fish. Captain John Smith persuaded them to give up their reservations and start fishing for and using sturgeon.
Sturgeon were used for many different purposes, not just food. The meat was high in protein and was prepared by a smoking or pickling process. This process allowed for the meat to be shipped and travel great distances without spoiling. People used sturgeon oil instead of sperm whale oil because it didn’t taste as smokey and didn’t go bad as quickly. Isinglass, which is made from a sturgeon’s swim bladder, was used to stick things together and hold paint together. The thick skin of the sturgeon was made into leather by a tanning process. And the roe or eggs of the sturgeon was prepared through a salting process to become caviar.
During the late 1800’s, the great “Caviar Rush” began. News of the abundance of sturgeon with caviar or “black gold” on the East Coast spread quickly. Many people came to the coast to find wealth. This was called the “Caviar or Black Gold Rush.” ” By the end of the 1800’s and beginning of the 1900’s, sturgeon stocks had declined drastically. Because of too much fishing, only 20,000 pounds of sturgeon were caught in 1905, and by 1989, only 400 pounds of sturgeon were recorded. In 1887, close to seven million pounds of sturgeon were caught. From tens of thousands of fish caught to just a few, the number of sturgeon caught dropped by 100 years.
Sturgeon Cleaning and Filleting Demo
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