This sturgeon has been known to reach 2.5 m (8.2 ft) in length, but it is usually much smaller.[8] Its body is blue-gray above and yellowish white on the belly, with five rows of scutes. The head is triangular and the snout is long with the mouth located on the underside. There are two pairs of barbels.[9]
Behavior
The fish lives in slow-moving river waters over substrates of sand and mud. It feeds on aquatic plants, invertebrates, and small fish. This species is potamodromous, taking part in a migration, but never leaving fresh water.[9] It spawns in the upper Yangtze, mainly during March and April, and sometimes around November and December. Males spawn each year, but most females do not. The female produces 57,000 to 102,000 eggs.[9]
Conservation status
This was once a common fish in the Yangtze system.[9] It was known from the main river and some of its larger tributaries, as well as some lakes attached to the system. By the late 20th century, it was extirpated from the lower river and limited to the upper reaches in Sichuan. The main causes of its drastic decline include overfishing, including the overharvesting of juveniles. The construction of dams, notably the Gezhouba Dam and Three Gorges Dam, blocked the movement of the fish along the river, restricting it to the upper reaches. It also caused habitat fragmentation and degradation. Increased development and deforestation on land near the river has increased pollution from wastewater and runoff.[1] The Yangtze basin is and was its main range, but it has also been found in the Yellow River basin, with the last recordbredthe 1960s.[6][7]
The fish has been bred in captivity since the 1970s. Thousands of individuals have been released into the Yangtze basin, but are apparently not breeding. Nevertheless, this restocking may be the only effort preventing the extinction of the species.[1]
On June 7th, 2024, the China Three Gorges Corporation released over 800,000 individuals bred in captivity into the Yangtze River in Yibin with plans to continue breeding them with future mass releases in the future.[10]
