The Giant White Sturgeon of British Columbia has become most sought after fresh water game fish on the planet. These beautiful prehistoric creatures are a study in their own right, living over a hundred years and their species making it to the 21 century all the way from prehistoric times.
The reproductive cycle of the Fraser’s white sturgeon is not fully known. The following data will make you appreciate the current regulations on the white sturgeon. Female Sturgeon spawn for the first time when they are approximately 11-34 years old and males spawn first between 11-22 years of age (Semakula and Larkin 1968). Subsequent spawning will occur every 4-9 years! Just think back not too long ago when it was legal to keep a fish up to 2 meters in length. That fish would’ve been a prime reproducing fish as old as 30 years. The sturgeon population, would suffer quickly as a result since it appears that sturgeon are likely to stay in their areas, acting somewhat like "homebodies". If you were to keep that 30 year old sturgeon, it would take 30 years to replace that same sized fish in that area! And anglers were keeping these fish at a rate of one per day! It wasn’t until the mysterious deaths of large adult sturgeon in 1993 and 1994 that sturgeon regulations were changed to catch and release only.
Giant White Sturgeon are protected in British Columbia and all fish must be released very carefully.