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Conservation Biology, Volume **, No Contributed Paper Management and Recovery Options for Ural River Beluga Sturgeon PHAEDRA DOUKAKIS,∗§§ ELIZABETH A. BABCOCK,† ELLEN K. PIKITCH,∗ ALEXEI R. SHAROV,‡ MIRGALY BAIMUKHANOV,§ SAGIDEN ERBULEKOV,∗∗ YELENA BOKOVA,†† AND AKHAT NIMATOV‡‡ ∗Institute for Ocean Conservation Science, School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, U.S.A. †Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL 33149, U.S.A. ‡Maryland Department of Natural Resources, 580 Taylor Avenue, Annapolis, MD 21401, U.S.A. §Hydrobiology and Ecology Institute, Kirova 25 v, Irgeli village, Karassaisky rayon, Almaty, Republic of Kazakhstan ∗∗Agip KCO, Atyrau, Republic of Kazakhstan ††Research and Production Center of Fish Industry, Ministry of Agriculture, Atyrau, Republic of Kazakhstan ‡‡Atyrau Sturgeon Hatchery, Atyrau, Republic of Kazakhstan Abstract: Management of declining fisheries of anadromous species sometimes relies heavily on supple- mentation of populations with captive breeding, despite evidence that captive breeding can have negative consequences and may not address the root cause of decline. The beluga sturgeon (Huso huso), a species threatened by the market for black caviar and reductions in habitat quality, is managed through harvest control and hatchery supplementation, with an emphasis on the latter. We used yield per recruit and elasticity analyses to evaluate the population status and current levels of fishing and to identify the life-history stages that are the best targets for conservation of beluga of the Ural River. Harvest rates in recent years were four to five times higher than rates that would sustain population abundance. Sustainable rates of fishing mortality are similar to those for other long-lived marine species such as sharks and mammals. Yield per recruit, which is maximized if fish are first harvested at age 31 years, would be greatly enhanced by raising minimum size limits or reducing illegal take of subadults. Improving the survival of subadult and adult females would increase population productivity by 10 times that achieved by improving fecundity and survival from egg to age 1 year (i.e., hatchery supplementation). These results suggest that reducing mortality of subadults and adult wild fish is a more effective conservation strategy than hatchery supplementation. Because genetics is not factored into hatchery management practices, supplementation may even reduce the viability of the beluga sturgeon. Keywords: Caspian Sea, caviar, CITES, hatchery, overfishing, reference points Opciones de Manejo y Recuperacion´ del Esturion´ Beluga del R´ıo Ural Resumen: El manejo de pesquer´ıas de peces anadromos´ en declinacion´ a veces depende estrechamente de la suplementacion´ de poblaciones mediante la reproduccion´ en cautiverio, no obstante la evidencia de que la reproduccion´ en cautiverio puede tener consecuencias negativas y no abordar la causa principal de la declinacion.´ El esturion´ beluga (Huso huso), una especie amenazada por el mercado de caviar negro y por reducciones en la calidad del habitat,´ es manejado mediante el control de la cosecha y suplementacion´ de poblaciones, con ´enfasis en esta. Utilizamos analisis´ de produccion´ por recluta y de elasticidad para evaluar el estatus de la poblacion´ y los niveles de pesca actuales y para identificar las etapas de la historia de vida que §§email [email protected] Paper submitted August 7, 2009; revised manuscript accepted October 15, 2009. 1 Conservation Biology, Volume **, No. **, ***–*** C 2010 Society for Conservation Biology DOI: 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2010.01458.x 2 Management of Ural River Beluga son los mejores blancos para la conservacion´ del beluga en el R´ıo Ural. Las tasas de cosecha en anos˜ recientes fueron cuatro a cinco veces mayores que las tasas que sustentar´ıan la abundancia de la poblacion.´ Las tasas sustentables de mortalidad por pesca son similares a las de otras especies marinas longevas como tiburones y mam´ıferos. La produccion´ por recluta, que es maximizada si los peces son cosechados a la edad de 31 anos,˜ podr´ıa incrementar significativamente elevando los l´ımites de talla m´ınima o reduciendo la captura ilegal de subadultos. La mejora de la supervivencia de hembras subadultas y adultas incrementar´ıa la productividad de la poblacion´ 10 veces mas´ que la mejora obtenida incrementando la fecundidad y supervivencia de huevo a1ano˜ de edad (i. e., suplementacion´ de poblaciones mediante reproduccion´ en cautiverio). Estos resultados sugieren que la reduccion´ de la mortalidad de peces silvestres subadultos y adultos es una mejor estrategia de conservacion´ que la suplementacion.´ Debido a que la gen´etica no es considerada en las practicas´ de manejo en los criaderos, la suplementacion´ incluso puede reducir la viabilidad del esturion´ beluga. Palabras Clave: caviar, CITES, criadero, Mar Caspio, puntos de referencia, sobrepesca Introduction itch et al. 2005). The value of beluga caviar, which in 2009 sold for up to US$8000/kg, is a source of incentive Species conservation and restoration programs some- for poaching and intensive fishing. Dams have affected times use captive-bred individuals to improve the status spawning habitat; 90% of the historic spawning grounds of wild populations (Fraser 2008). For fishes, hatchery- in the Caspian Sea have been destroyed or are inacces- based supplementation programs, although potentially sible to the species (Secor et al. 2000). More than 12 beneficial, can have negative genetic, ecological, and hatcheries were established in rivers of the Caspian Sea evolutionary effects, particularly when the abundance of in the 1960s to compensate for the effects of dams and wild populations is very small (Ryman & Laikre 1991). have released millions of juvenile sturgeon (including bel- Moreover, restoration through hatchery supplementation uga) annually (Secor et al. 2000; Chebanov et al. 2002). can only be achieved if the root cause of decline (e.g., fish- Only limited broodstock is used in most hatcheries, and ing, loss of habitat) is addressed. Results of some previous no genetic management plans exist. The success of hatch- research suggest that hatchery supplementation should ery release for this or any other species of sturgeon has only be used in the short term to maintain extremely small not been well assessed. populations and not as a primary tool for rebuilding fish Beluga sturgeon landings in the Caspian Sea peaked at populations (Philippart 1995; Fraser 2008; McClure et al. over 14,000 tons annually in the early 1900s, but har- 2008). Therefore, alternative conservation actions should vest has not exceeded 2500 t annually since the late be evaluated to determine whether they could more ef- 1930s (Korobochkina 1964; Pikitch et al. 2005). For all fectively achieve recovery. nations except Iran, which has active fisheries in coastal The beluga sturgeon (Huso huso) is an economically areas, legal fishing of beluga occurs only in rivers dur- valuable species that is managed through harvest control ing spring and autumn spawning periods (Bauer 1997; and hatchery supplementation, with an emphasis on the Levin 1997; Khodorevskaya & Krasikov 1999). The Ural latter. The historic range of this anadromous species and River is the only major river in which no dams block ac- the rivers where a majority of fish spawned included the cess to spawning habitats and large spawning areas (981 Caspian (Ural and Volga rivers), Black (Danube and Dnepr ha) persist (Volkova 2007, unpublished manuscript). The rivers), Azov (Don and Kuban rivers), and Adriatic seas two hatcheries on the Ural River operate by breeding re- (Po River) (Billard & Lecointre 2001; Pikitch et al. 2005). productively mature fish captured during spawning runs According to the International Union for Conservation of and then harvesting these animals for their meat or occa- Nature (IUCN 2009), the beluga sturgeon is endangered. sionally retaining them for continued use in the hatchery. Its Adriatic population has been extirpated, and the pop- Landings of beluga sturgeon in the Ural River peaked at ulation in the Azov Sea is critically endangered (IUCN over 750 t in the mid 1960s and decreased to 27 t in 2007 2009). Long lived (up to 100 years) and late maturing (Mamina 1995; unpublished data of the Research and Pro- (9–13 years), beluga are particularly vulnerable to heavy duction Center of Fish Industry). As of 2002, 2500 beluga levels of fishing (Babushkin 1964; Raspopov 1993; Billard sturgeon spawned in the Ural River, whereas historically & Lecointre 2001). International trade of beluga sturgeon tens of thousands spawned there annually. products is regulated by the Convention on International Currently there is no accepted estimate of the num- Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) under Appendix II ber of individual beluga sturgeon in the Ural River or of the convention. any other population in the Caspian Sea. Concerns have High demand for black caviar (unfertilized roe of stur- been raised regarding the methods used to estimate abun- geon), fishing, and changes in habitat quality have nega- dance and total allowable catch (TAC), which are the ba- tively affected the beluga sturgeon, and commercial pop- sis for CITES trade quotas, and the effectiveness of fish- ulations are currently limited to the Caspian Sea (Pik- eries management practices (FAO 2004; Doukakis et al. Conservation Biology Volume **, No. **, 2010 Doukakis et al. 3 2005; Pikitch
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