Sturgeon

Acipenser, Huso spp.

5: Avoid How we work out the ratings

What to check for

Location

North East Atlantic: All areas

Technical location

All areas

Caught by

Hook & line (pole & line), Net (gill or fixed)

Rating summary

All wild caught sturgeon are Fish To Avoid. All species found in UK waters or on the UK market are assessed as Critically Endangered by IUCN. Because of this, they are automatically a red-rated species. The value of wild sturgeon caviar is so high that there is a substantial illegal fishery that is completely unregulated.

How we worked out this Rating

All species found in UK waters or on the UK market are assessed as Critically Endangered by IUCN. Because of this, they are automatically a red-rated species, due to their stock status.

The sturgeon species on the UK market include: Acipenser sturio – European sturgeon, A. gueldenstaedtii - Russian, A. baerii – Siberian and Huso huso – Beluga, all of which have been assessed as critically endangered since at least 2019. Although there is no available evidence of wild caught sturgeon on the UK market, or caught in UK fisheries, there is evidence of a substantial illegal fishery in Europe. Therefore, it is important to check the provenance of any sturgeon products.

This fishery has a default red rating due to biomass concerns.

Since 1998, international trade in all species of sturgeons has been regulated under CITES - the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species - owing to concerns over the impact of unsustainable harvesting of, and illegal trade in, sturgeon populations in the wild. There is also illegal trade in caviar, and poaching by criminal gangs is common.

Catching sturgeon is heavily regulated across Europe, with very limited legal fishing quotas. In the UK it is an offence to land sturgeon without specific permission from the Marine Management Organisation (MMO). They should always be returned to sea, ideally alive, unless fishers have permission to land dead specimens for scientific research.

In the UK Common sturgeon is protected under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017, the Conservation of Offshore Marine Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 and the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. They are classed as a ‘Royal Fish’ and any sturgeon caught are the right of the Crown’.

This fishery has a default red rating due to biomass concerns.

In countries where sturgeon is targeted they are mainly caught in nets. In the UK it is understood that accidental captures very occasionally happen in both fresh water by rod and line and as bycatch in marine fisheries, likely due to recent reintroductions in France.

References

CITES, 2021. CITES publishes quotas for wild caviar from the Caspian Sea. Available at: https://cites.org/eng/news/pr/2008/080303_caviar.shtml [[Accessed on 16.10.2025]

C&RT, 2020. Canal and River Trust, Common/European Sturgeon. Available at: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/fishing/caring-for-our-fish/freshwater-fish-species/rare-and-protected-fish/common-european-sturgeon [Accessed on 16.10.2025].

MMO, 2017. Protection of common sturgeon: advice for fishermen. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/protection-of-common-sturgeon-advice-for-fishermen#:~:text=What%20to%20do%20if%20you,do%20so%20from%20the%20MMO.&text=It%20is%20important%20that%20any,of%20each%20fish%20is%20essential [Accessed on 16.10.2025].

IUCN, 2025. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2025-2. < Search including: Acipenser sturio – European sturgeon, A. gueldenstaedtii - Russian sturgeon, A. baerii - Siberian, Huso huso – Beluga. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org/ [Accessed on 16.10.2025].

WWF, 2021. Poaching and illegal trade in sturgeon pose major threat to critically endangered species in Europe. Available at: https://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?2014941/Poaching-and-illegal-trade-in-sturgeon-pose-major-threat-to-critically-endangered-species-in-Europe [Accessed on 16.10.2025].