Historic Overview on the Status of the European Sturgeon (Acipenser sturio) and Its Fishery in the North Sea and Its Tributaries with a Focus on German Waters

Geßner, Jörn; Spratte, S.; Kirschbaum, Frank

doi:10.1007/978-3-642-20611-5_14

Cited by 6 publications

(15 citation statements)

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“…The optimum number, location, and size of restored sturgeon spawning sites are also important considerations, particularly when present and historical use provides limited guidance . (Gessner et al, 2011).…”

Section: Lake Sturgeon -Detroit and St Clair Rivers (Context = Re-mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Flow restoration represents another remediation approach based on the association between sturgeon population declines and river flow regulation (Gessner & Bartel, ; Gessner, Spratte, & Kirschbaum, ; Luk'yanenko et al., ; Petts et al., ). The positive correlation between freshet flows and recruitment for some species (Dumont et al., ; Kohlhorst, Botsford, Brennan, & Cailliet, ; Nilo et al., ) suggest the importance of the magnitude of freshet flows.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Verification of spawning habitat use will therefore not be possible prior to this date. Despite this limitation, conceptual plans to improve the availability of adult spawning and staging habitat and the quality of early life phase habitats are being developed on the basis of a Project Group under the Helsinki Commission for the Baltic range states (Gessner et al., ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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If you build it, will they come? Spawning habitat remediation for sturgeon

et al. 2017

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Summary Habitat loss is a widely recognized contributor to global declines in sturgeon populations yet habitat remediation has been limited for this highly endangered group of fish. In support of future sturgeon restoration efforts, this review examines habitat remediation needs and uncertainties. Consideration of the bio‐spatial scale of remediation identified needs ranging from local to the whole river scale. Additionally, the context of remediation ranges from reintroducing sturgeon to habitats where they have been extirpated to conservation of currently functional habitat. While multiple remediation scales and contexts are discussed, the focus on spawning and early rearing habitat and associated biological and physical monitoring reflects the range of current projects and the importance of early rearing habitats. Four case studies are presented that examine four distinct remediation contexts (mitigation, rejuvenation, re‐creation, repatriation) and three bio‐spatial scales (whole river, spawning reach, spawning location) under which remediation has been attempted. Evaluation of existing remediation works indicates that many show limited long‐term success, which is most often a response to substrate infilling in remediated habitats. Material presented in this review will help align sturgeon research and monitoring approaches in support of effective remediation. The limited number of remediation projects to‐date attests to the importance of learning from existing projects and cross‐species comparisons, to maximize the effectiveness of future restoration efforts.

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Section: Lake Sturgeon -Detroit and St Clair Rivers (Context = Re-mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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If you build it, will they come? Spawning habitat remediation for sturgeon

et al. 2017

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“…The European sturgeon ( Acipenser sturio ) was a prevalent species in the commercial fishery of the Elbe River, resulting in annual landings of 8000–10 000 adult fish between 1850 and 1889 in the lower Elbe, from the mouth of the river to the city of Hamburg (Gessner et al., ). The decline of the species became evident between 1889 and until 1925, when catches dropped on average by 50% in subsequent years (Mohr, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Only in the Eider and Oste rivers did a small‐scale fishery remain active until the 1950s, with the last documented catches occurring in 1968 and 1985, respectively (Spratte and Hartmann, ). Between 1874 and 1898, the German fisheries union made several attempts to support the population through stocking, with a total release of approximately 2 000 000 feeding fry but with no detectable effects (Gessner et al., ,b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A life-stage population model of the European sturgeon (Acipenser sturio L., 1758) in the Elbe River. Part II: assessment of the historic population decline

Geßner

Jarić

2014

J. Appl. Ichthyol.

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A post-hoc analysis on the decline of the European sturgeon (Acipenser sturio) population in the Elbe River was performed for the end of the 19th century. A modeling approach was applied to determine the role of various factors potentially impacting the population. Using an agestructured population model developed for European sturgeon, the estimates of fishing efficiency in the Elbe were verified. Catches reported from 1850 to 1920 were used as a basis to identify the population size, dynamics of the decline and the impacts contributing to the population decline. According to results of the model, the historic population size of the European sturgeon in the Elbe River exceeded 450 000 individuals. The population revealed a significant response in abundance of adults towards the fishery directed at spawning migrants, even at low fishery effort. Unsustainable fishery was the initial cause of the population decline, while increasing pollution and habitat degradation revealed significant impacts after 1860. The results represent a good example for the fisheries 'hyperstability' phenomenon. In the case of the Elbe fishery, an increasing fishery effort was masking the actual population decline while temporarily maintaining the overall yield. The results indicate that, for sturgeons and other species with similar life history patterns, the use of fishery data for the assessment of population dynamics and fishery sustainability has to be applied with due caution, as it might produce false images of the population size and dynamics. U.S.

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Historical reconstruction of sturgeon (Acipenser spp.) spatiotemporal distribution and causes for their decline in North-Western Europe

et al. 2022

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This study aims to reconstruct the historical spatiotemporal distribution of the anadromous sturgeons, Acipenser sturio and A. oxyrinchus, in NW-Europe (especially in the Rhine, Meuse, Scheldt, and Ems rivers, and in the North Sea), in light of evaluating the possibilities for their reintroduction. It is based on fisheries data from the 14th–twentieth century, consisting of > 5000 records of sturgeon landings and sales (c. 40,000 specimens) from the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Luxemburg, France and Switzerland. Most data originate from fisheries in the Rhine-Meuse delta (c. 28,000 specimens, 98% of the Rhine catches). Further upstream, far fewer sturgeons (c. 600 specimens) were reported from the Rhine’s mainstem and its principal tributaries, Mosel, Neckar and Main. Smaller tributaries and the Ems, Meuse, and Scheldt rivers seldom yielded sturgeons. This spatial pattern can be related to the species’ preference for large-river habitat, combined with fisheries activities that were most intensive in the delta areas. Sturgeon catches began to dwindle in the late nineteenth century, at a time when river engineering first strongly affected the sturgeon’s reproductive habitats in the Lower Rhine and delta areas. Also from then onwards, North Sea fishery pressure increased, as trawlers switched from sail to steam-powered propulsion. These sea fisheries harvested all age-classes of sturgeons year-round, including populations from other European rivers. The outcomes strongly suggest that NW-European sturgeon populations were initially impacted by intensive river fisheries, but especially by destruction of reproductive habitat, due to river regulation, and an intensified North Sea fishery, ultimately resulting in total population collapse.

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Historic Overview on the Status of the European Sturgeon (Acipenser sturio) and Its Fishery in the North Sea and Its Tributaries with a Focus on German Waters

Cited by 6 publications

References 4 publications

If you build it, will they come? Spawning habitat remediation for sturgeon

If you build it, will they come? Spawning habitat remediation for sturgeon

A life-stage population model of the European sturgeon (Acipenser sturio L., 1758) in the Elbe River. Part II: assessment of the historic population decline

Historical reconstruction of sturgeon (Acipenser spp.) spatiotemporal distribution and causes for their decline in North-Western Europe

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