Despite numerous measures taken at national and international levels, the status of Danube sturgeon populations has worsened dramatically, urging their protection at basin level to prevent extinction. In this context, the identification of functional population segments (management entities) is considered of highest priority for sustainable fisheries and conservation management. Thus, the present project aims to develop and apply new genetic markers (microsatellite loci and mitochondrial DNA) to determine the stock structure and to verify and distinguish between long and medium distance migrants of the spring and fall races of the four sturgeon species Acipenser gueldenstaedtii, A. ruthenus, A. stellatus and Huso huso in the Romanian part of the Danube. The same methods will be used in Turkey to discriminate the fish that are endemic in rivers Yesilırmak, Kizilırmak, Çoruh and Sakarya from fish that are utilizing Turkish coastal waters as foraging grounds solely but originate from Western and Northern Black Sea tributaries including the Danube River. Data on the stock structure and genetic differentiation between them will finally be used to define management entities and to provide recommendations for fisheries as well as conservation management including captive breeding schemes that maximize genetic variability of stocks while maintaining their genetic integrity.
“DANUBE DELTA” NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT