site.btaWWF Releases 6,500 Fish of Critically Endangered Russian Sturgeon Species in Danube River near Belene

WWF Bulgaria and its partners released nearly 6,500 fish of the critically endangered Russian sturgeon species into the Danube near Belene on Tuesday, the conservation organization said. Before their release, the young fish were marked with a special tag that will enable experts to identify them in future observations as specimens from this particular restocking programme. 

The fish are two and a half months old and about 15 cm long.  They began their life journey at Europe's first floating sturgeon breeding station, which opened in Vienna in April; they are of proven Danube origin. They were raised as part of the innovative LIFE-Boat4Sturgeon project, which aims to create a gene bank for breeding young individuals of the four species of sturgeon still found in the Danube, thereby helping to ensure their survival.

WWF Bulgaria urges fishermen along the river to protect the young fish, as they can easily get tangled in their nets. If this happens, the fish must be immediately released and returned to the river, said WWF chief expert Stoyan Mihov. 

Sturgeons  play an important role as an indicator of the state of river ecosystems. They have become the world's most endangered animal family due to habitat loss, migratory routes being blocked by dams, dykes, and hydroelectric power plants, overfishing, water pollution, and hybridisation. A complete ban on their catch in the Danube and the Black Sea is in force.