The Past and Future of Sturgeons in Poland: The Genetic Approach

To support the sturgeon reestablishment program in Poland, DNA analyses of the extinct sturgeon populations of Odra and Vistula rivers were performed. According to the data obtained, the dominant sturgeon species since the third century BC was Acipenser oxyrinchus, rather than A. sturio as previously stated. Two ancient populations of A. oxyrinchus from Poland, one dated for the third century BC and one for the ninth to thirteenth centuries AD, were genetically characterized based upon mtDNA region (used here) and microsatellite analysis. The two populations are genetically close to A. oxyrinchus populations from the St. John River population, NB, Canada. Starting from 2004, fertilized eggs obtained from sturgeons in the St. John River were transferred to Poland. In 2006/2007, the first experimental stocking was performed. The fish maintained as a brood stock, as well as those used for stocking, were genetically characterized to monitor the level of genetic polymorphism.