sturgeon

Etymology

From Middle English sturgiun, sturjoun, from Old French estorjoun (“sturgeon”), from Frankish *sturjō, from Proto-Germanic *sturjô (“sturgeon”).

noun

1. Any marine or freshwater fish of the family Acipenseridae that are prized for their roe and are endemic to temperate seas and rivers of the northern hemisphere, especially central Eurasia.
   An investigation has been carried out into the changes in blood chemistry which occur during the migration of young sturgeon and spawned adults from freshwater into saltwater and of the migration of prespawning adults in the reverse direction by Magnin (1962). 1961, W. N. Holmes, Edward M. Donaldson, “1: Body Compartments and the Distribution of Electrolytes”, in William Stewart Hoar, David J. Randall, editors, Fish Physiology, volume 1, page 57
   1997, M. L. Khrykhtin, V. G. Svirsky, Sturgeon catch and the current status of sturgeon stocks in the Amur River, Andreas Bauer, Astrid Kaiser-Pohlmann, Sturgeon Stocks and Caviar Trade Workshop: Proceedings, page 29, Strict regulation of the catch was introduced in the Soviet Union in 1976 in order to prevent overfishing of the sexually mature sturgeons in the river.
   Long and snout-nosed with rows of platelike bony protrusions, sturgeon have a dinosaur-era look. 2002, Elizabeth Grossman, Watershed: The Undamming of America, page 41
   Information on the spawning period, spawning behavior, and other details of the reproductive biology of green sturgeon in the Columbia River is lacking (Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife 1995). 2006, Richard N. Williams, James A. Lichatowich, Madison S. Powell, “4: The Diversity, Structure and Status of Populations”, in Richard N. Williams, editor, Return to the River: Restoring Salmon Back to the Columbia River, page 156
   Only about one out of every 80 sturgeons caught in the Sacramento River is a Green Sturgeon, and that lopsided ratio is reversed for sturgeons taken in the Klamath River. 2006, Samuel M. McGinnis, Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of California, Revised edition, page 139
   In 2009, 120,000 Chinese sturgeons were released into the Yangtze River in an effort to boost the population of the endangered species in the wild. 2010, Molly Aloian, The Yangtze: China's Majestic River, page 22