State of the Siberian sturgeon population in the Middle Lena in summer
https://doi.org/10.36038/2307-3497-2023-194-37-43
Abstract
The purpose: to obtain modern data on the distribution, abundance, size composition and biological state of the sturgeon in the middle reaches of the Lena River.
Material: data of scientific accounting survey using bottom drift nets in summer 2022.
The results: Siberien sturgeon is dstributed irregularly on a 400‑kilometer stretch of the river from the city of Yakutsk to the Vilyui River, with the highest average density near the Vilyui River mouth 163 ind./km2, while sturgeon densities in the areas of Yakutsk and the Aldan River mouth were 71 and 44 ind./km2 respectively. The highest density of fish with the smallest average size in the area near the Vilyui mouth indirectly indicates the presence of a separate herd in the Vilyui River. The average density of fish over the entire 400‑km area was 93 ind./km2. The sturgeon length to the end of the middle rays (ac) was from 21 to 86 cm; on average 43.4 ± 10.7 cm. The modal size class for the sturgeon in catches in 2022 was 41–50 cm (44% of the total catch). The fish weight ranged from 40 to 3800 g. The average weight of individuals was 0.557. More than 80% of fish from all catches weighed up to 700 g. The weight of fish with a length ac 62–71 cm ranged from 0,400 to 1.415 kg, on average 1.0 kg. There were only 2.5% of commercial individuals in the total harvest. Sexually mature females were noted only near the Aldan mouth, where their share was 11% that may indicate the presence of spawning grounds in its channel. In the sample of fish that underwent a complete biological analysis (one third of the catches), sexually mature males were not observed. Estimated number of sturgeon: in Yakutsk city area — 17000 ind., in the Aldan mouth area — 47000 ind., in the Vilyui mouth area — 55000 ind. The total number of Siberian sturgeon on a 400‑kilometer stretch of the Lena River was at least 120000 ind. The state and structure of sturgeon population corresponds to the average statistical retrospective data.
Practical value: the results obtained will improve the efficiency of assessing the distribution and stock of sturgeon in the Lena River.
About the Authors
O. Yu. Vilkova
Russian Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography («VNIRO»)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
19, Okruzhnoy proezd, Moscow, 105187
E. V. Burmistrov
Institute for Biological Problems of Cryolithozone SB RAS («IBPC SB RAS»)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
41, Lenina ave., Yakutsk, 677000
Yu. A. Sveshnikov
Yakutsk branch of «VNIRO» («YakutskNIRO»)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
32/3, office 1, Yaroslavskogo street, Yakutsk, 677018
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Review
For citations:
Vilkova O.Yu., Burmistrov E.V., Sveshnikov Yu.A. State of the Siberian sturgeon population in the Middle Lena in summer. Trudy VNIRO. 2023;194:37-43. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.36038/2307-3497-2023-194-37-43
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