Survey Finds Massive, 220-Pound, Endangered Sturgeon In The Hudson

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — There are signs that a Hudson River denizen is making a comeback.

The Atlantic sturgeon is now endangered, but was once so plentiful it earned the monicker "Albany beef." Now, researchers are reporting some "big" news about the species rebound.

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An east coast-wide moratorium on sturgeon fishing was declared in 1998. Recent sightings have offered some hope the endangered native species is slowly beginning to make a rebound in the Hudson River.

While the anadromous fish species spends most of the year in the ocean, migrating from Florida to Maine, the adults move into the Hudson during this time of year to spawn.

They are the Hudson River's biggest fish, and New York State's largest sturgeon species. New York has three species — the Atlantic sturgeon, the shortnose sturgeon, and the lake sturgeon, according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC).

Last week, during an Atlantic sturgeon survey, Hudson River Estuary Program fisheries staff captured a fish that was over 6 feet long and weighed about 220 pounds, according to the agency. Researchers believe the fish is a female that had not yet spawned.

The fish was captured near Hyde Park, under a National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) endangered species research permit.

The annual survey, which started in 2006, is conducted over the course of several weeks in May and June and is used to track trends in the Atlantic sturgeon population. Staff use nets to capture the fish, measure it, scan it for a tag (or give it one if it doesn't have one), take a piece of fin for genetic analysis, and weigh it before releasing it back into the wild.

Learn more about the Hudson River Estuary Program, here.