The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) saved the fish after a tip-off from anglers who saw the sturgeon being taken by a suspected poacher. Images released by the CDFW showed the large green sturgeon, in the trunk of the car.
The southern population segment of green sturgeon in North America was listed as an endangered species by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries in 2006 under the Endangered Species Act. There are an estimated 1,300 left in southern California, the Center for Biological Diversity said.
The CDFW was alerted to a poaching incident on November 12 last year when anglers at the Clifton Court Reservoir near Tracy spotted another fisherman catch the fish and recognized it as an endangered green sturgeon.
The angler contacted a friend who suggested he document the illegal take and send the evidence to the CDFW’s Turn In Poachers (TIP) system, which operates on intelligence from the public.
DFW officers went to the suspect’s house, where he was apprehended. “Wildlife officers found him to be in possession of the green sturgeon, which was stuffed into the back of his compact SUV. Pulling the big fish from the vehicle, officers noticed it was still alive and there might be a chance to save it,” CDFW said in a Facebook post.
The officers involved in the operation managed to return the fish back into the water after racing with it to a nearby boat ramp. “It took 90 minutes of effort to revive the stressed sturgeon but it was successfully released and biologists say that its chances of survival appear good,” the CDFW said.
Green sturgeon are anadromous fish, meaning they can survive in both salt and freshwater. They can live over 60 years and return from the ocean to the river systems they were born. Various human threats including poaching, habitat alteration and pollution, and fisheries by-catching of the fish contributed to a rapid depletion in their numbers.
The green sturgeon saved from the suspected poacher measured over five feet. It was estimated to be between 25 and 30 years old, meaning the animal was of a key breeding age and could help the green sturgeon population recover if it survives.
The poaching suspect was handed a citation for the unlawful take of a green sturgeon, failing to report it and failing to return the animal back to the water, CDFW said. He is now being prosecuted by the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office.
