Food Characteristics and Feeding Management on Sturgeon with a Special Focus on the Siberian Sturgeon

Information on nutrition and feeding is scarce for most sturgeon species. In natural waters, the Siberian sturgeon, Acipenser baerii Brandt, feeds predominantly on benthic organisms. Information on Siberian sturgeon nutrition and feeding is needed because of increased interest from hatcheries and farms producing fish for release, meat, and caviar. Feeding of fish is one of the most important components in the process of sturgeon breeding. At early stages of fish life, the special sturgeon feed with raised content of protein is applied. In the initial period of larval Siberian sturgeon feeding and during the first 6 days of exogenous feeding, it is beneficial to use natural feed, for example, larval Artemia sp., followed by dry food. Juvenile Siberian sturgeon with a mean body weight of up to 10 g can be fed appropriately selected granulated trout feed or specialty sturgeon feed. This feed is highly digestible that promotes fast growth of juvenile sturgeon.