Restoration of the European Sturgeon Acipenser sturio in Germany

The onset of practical restoration measures on Acipenser sturio in Germany is represented by the transfer of 40 one-year-old juveniles from the French Cemagref to the German Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries in 1996 as a result of a bilateral cooperation. Molecular genetic studies revealed that these fish from the Garonne river system represented suitable material for the re-introduction into the tributaries of the North Sea. The fish were used for behavioural, feeding, and rearing experiments to improve the husbandry practice in fresh water. In 2005, a first female developed ripe gonad for the first time but artificial reproduction had not been accomplished to date. Subsequent transfers of juveniles in 2007, 2009, and 2010 allowed the expansion of the German brood stock, as well as first experimental releases both with tagged and telemetry transmitters to verify habitat utilization, migration patterns, and – through catch data – growth of the fish in the rivers Elbe, Oste, and Stor.