Paddlefish

Mississippi paddlefish, American paddlefish, Spoonbill, Spoonbill cat, Shovelbill cat, Duckbill cat, Shovelnose cat, Spoonbill sturgeon, Spadefish, Boneless cat, Freshwater sturgeon, Chattanooga beluga, American sturgeon, Freshwater whale

Globally, stocks of Acipenseriformes (sturgeons and paddlefish) face similar sets of challenges. They are all at risk due to their life history traits and inhabit areas subject to extensive modification from development, pollution and demand for hydroelectric energy. These species are the source of one of the most lucrative global fisheries – for caviar.

The order Acipenseriformes which dates back to the upper Cretaceous, more than 200 million years ago, consist of the Acipenseridae family (sturgeons) and the Polyodontidae family(paddlefish). Both are found exclusively in the Northern hemisphere—with the exception of the Pearl River in China.

Sturgeons and paddlefish demonstrate one of three types of migration patterns: anadromy, freshwater amphidromy, and potamodromy. Although all Acipenseriformes spawn in freshwater rivers, they differ in where they forage, how they migrate, and where they spend the majority of their time. Some species spend their entire life cycle in freshwater, while others use estuarine or coastal saltwater resources for growth and foraging, only entering freshwater to undergo reproduction. This dependence on freshwater river systems poses one of the largest threats to Acipenseriformes worldwide.

Sturgeons are moderately vulnerable to fishing based on their main life-history characteristics. However all species are also subject to narrow ranges and habitat that has been substantially compromised by non-fishing impacts. For these reasons, sturgeons and paddlefish of both the United States and the Caspian Sea are considered “inherently vulnerable” to fishing pressure.

The paddlefish fishery at the turn-of-the-century saw commercial harvests go from peak to depleted in a matter of 20 years. This species if extirpated in Canada and many eastern US states. Remaining stocks may be stable or possibly increasing in some areas although recent reports suggest that certain paddlefish stocks could be shifting towards younger age structures due to overfishing. No data are available, however, to determine if this shift is stock specific, or if it extends across the entire paddlefish distribution. Due to historical overfishing and extirpation in some regions, and a lack of current stock information the paddlefish stock is considered weak or a “moderate” conservation concern.

There is little to no information available regarding paddlefish bycatch issues except that it is known that males die in the fishery which is targeting females for their eggs. Bycatch of the paddlefish fishery is considered a “moderate” concern.

The impact of commercial sturgeon and paddlefish fishing on marine and riverine habitat is potentially low, but unknown. The impact that removal of large benthic fishes such as sturgeons and paddlefish has on ecosystems is also unknown. Fishing practices used for harvesting sturgeons and paddlefish are, therefore, considered to have a “moderate or unknown” effect on habitats and ecosystems. It is quite likely that damming, pollution and development all have greater environmental impacts than current fishing methods.

Due to the complete lack of knowledge about the stocks of paddlefish and Shovelnose sturgeon in the US, management is ranked as “ineffective”.

Is this sturgeon wild-caught, and if so, where was it caught?

Farmed sturgeon are the best choice. Wild-caught sturgeon sourced from the U.S is a better choice than from the Casipian Sea but are still of “Some concern”.

Contaminant levels do not warrant a consumption advisory.

No.