Tag Archives: fish biologist
Could Columbia River sturgeon become a source of high-end caviar? The Yakama Nation is counting on it
Ancestors of the Columbia sturgeon first emerged more than 200 million years ago, during the Triassic Period. One reason they’ve stuck around so long is they’re built like tanks. In lieu of scales, sturgeon have rows of armored plates called scutes, which run along their body. A long, flat snout conceals a mouth nearer their belly, from which they siphon up prey fish, like shad, lamprey, salmon and smelt. They can live 100 years and grow to 20 feet; big ones tip the scales at 1,500 pounds. One sturgeon could feed an entire village, and for centuries they did. >click to read< 10:50
