Acipenser brevirostrum female 58 cm long from the Hudson River near Kingston, New York, above Acipenser oxyrinchus male 58 cm long from the Lawrence River near St. Vallier, Quebec, by Paul I. Voevodine from Vladykov & Greeley (1963). 1 Sturgeon landing on the Volga River. From an engraving in Moynet . p. 85. 1 Moynet, M. 1867. LaVolga. LeTourduMonde15: 81 96. Environmental Biology of Fishes 48: 373 380,1997. © 1997 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands. Sturgeons and the Aral Sea ecological catastrophe Iliya Zholdasova Institute of Bioecology, Karakalpak Branch of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, Nukus, Republic Ka- kalpakstan Received5.4.1995 Accepted16.3.1996 Key words: Amu-Dar River, Syr-Dar River, Pseudoscaphirhynchus kaufmanni, P. fedtschenkoi, P. hermanni, Acipenser nudiventris, pollution, acclimatization, Nitzschia Synopsis A short description of the catastrophic changes in the ecology of the Aral Sea basin during the three last decades is presented. These changes have influenced the status oftwo acipenserid endemics to the area, the large Amu-Dar shovelnose, Pseudoscaphirhynchus kaufmanni, and the ship sturgeon,Acipensernudiventris. The main biological characteristics ofboth species in the new environmental conditions are given. Previous unsuccessful attempts to introduce other acipenserid species into the area are also described. International cooperationisneededforsavingthelastsurvivingspeciesrepresentingthegenusPseudoscaphirhynchus.The only twootherspeciesofthe same genus, P.fedtschenkoi and P . hermanni, have alreadybecome victims ofthe Aral Sea catastrophe and are apparently extinct. Introduction 1993). Twosturgeonspecies, the Syr-Dar and small Amu-Dar shovelnose sturgeons, were among the Historically the endemic fauna ofthe Aral Sea ba- first victims of this disaster and seem to be extinct.

Inhalt
Diversity and evolution of sturgeons and paddlefishes.- An overview of Acipenseriformes.- Osteology and phylogenetic interrelationships of sturgeons (Acipenseridae).- Phylogeny of the Acipenseriformes: Cytogenetic and molecular approaches.- How many species are there within the genus Acipenser?.- Prelude to sturgeon biodiversity and conservation.- Biology and status reports on sturgeons and paddlefishes.- Sturgeon rivers: An introduction to acipenseriform biogeography and life history.- Past and current status of sturgeons in the upper and middle Danube River.- Endangered migratory sturgeons of the lower Danube River and its delta.- Present status of commercial stocks of sturgeons in the Caspian Sea basin.- Species structure, contemporary distribution and status of the Siberian sturgeon, Acipenser baerii.- Endemic sturgeons of the Amur River: Kaluga, Huso dauricus, and Amur sturgeon, Acipenser schrenckii.- Biology, fisheries, and conservation of sturgeons and paddlefish in China.- Biology and life history of Dabry's sturgeon, Acipenser dabryanus, in the Yangtze River.- Observations on the reproductive cycle of cultured white sturgeon, Acipenser transmontanus.- Contemporary status of the North American paddlefish, Polyodon spathula.- Life history and status of the shovelnose sturgeon, Scaphirhynchus platorynchus.- The status and distribution of lake sturgeon, Acipenser fulvescens, in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec: A genetic perspective.- Lake sturgeon management in the Menominee River, a Wisconsin-Michigan boundary water.- Life history, latitudinal patterns, and status of the shortnose sturgeon Acipenser brevirostrum.- Status and management of Atlantic sturgeon, Acipenser oxyrinchus, in North America.- Atlantic and shortnose sturgeons of theHudson River: Common and divergent life history attributes.- Biological characteristics of European Atlantic sturgeon, Acipenser sturio, as the basis for a restoration program in France.- Sturgeon biodiversity and conservation: An introduction.- Controversies, conservation and summary.- Sturgeons and the Aral Sea ecological catastrophe.- Threatened fishes of the world: Pseudoscaphirhynchus spp. (Acipenseridae).- Molecular analysis in the conservation of sturgeons and paddlefish.- Sensitivity of North American sturgeons and paddlefish to fishing mortality.- Alternatives for the protection and restoration of sturgeons and their habitat.- Threatened fishes of the world: Scaphirynchus suttkusi Williams & Clemmer,1991 (Acipenseridae).- Threatened fishes of the world: Scaphirhynchus albus (Forbes & Richardson,1905) (Acipenseridae).- Sturgeon poaching and black market caviar: A case study.- The threatened status of acipenseriform species: A summary.- Leo Semenovich Berg and the biology of Acipenseriformes: A dedication.