LIFE NATURE | LIFE AND FRESHWATER FISH REINTRODUCTIONS AND RESTOCKING Facilitating habitat functionality for the Adriatic sturgeon LIFE has co-financed a collection of successful fish conservation activities in northern Italy that continue to improve the mobility and sustainability of Adriatic sturgeon in aquatic watercourses . he Adriatic sturgeon (Acipenser naccarii), a fishing, and a rapid increase in numbers of com- Tpriority species for conservation under An- petitive alien species, such as the catfish (Silurus nex II of the Habitats Directive, is currently re- glanis), all contribute to the sturgeons’ demise. stricted to the north-eastern Adriatic sea basin. It spawns in freshwater following a period of growth These barriers to migration have created a landlocked at sea. The species can attain a length of 150 cm sturgeon population that cannot access the sea. and is characterised by seasonal migrations from the sea to spawning areas located in the middle The uncoordinated management of the river basin, reaches of the Po, Adige, Piave and Brenta rivers. which falls under the jurisdiction of four regions Sturgeons are particularly threatened both be- and 15 provinces, is another major problem for this cause of their large size and the fact that they species. take a long time to reach maturity (7-8 years). The combination of the factors outlined above Traditionally, the sturgeons’ main reproductive contributed to an ‘unfavourable-bad’ conserva- sites covered large areas of these river basins but tion status for the species in the 2006 Article 17 the species is now at risk of extinction in some report. It is categorised as ‘critically endangered’ parts of its distribution range. in the IUCN European Red List of freshwater fish. Dams and weirs prevent the Adriatic sturgeons LIFE funding has proved to be a useful source of from reaching their main spawning areas. This help to tackle this nature conservation challenge. A disruption, combined with water pollution, illegal series of projects have concentrated their efforts on The Adriatic sturgeon (Acipenser naccarrii) is recognised as ‘critically endangered’ by the IUCN European Red List Photo: LIFE11 NAT/IT/000188 40.