Russian sturgeon: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the Russian sturgeon lives – recorded in 5 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Acipenser gueldenstaedtii
Group	Bony fish
Status	Critically endangered (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	5 countries
Continents	Asia, Europe
Class	Ray-finned fish
Order	Acipenseriformes
Family	Acipenseridae

Where does the Russian sturgeon live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the Russian sturgeon in 5 countries and territories across Asia and Europe. In Germany, Denmark it is listed as introduced (GRIIS checklists via GBIF).

Belgium
Denmark (introduced)
Serbia
Kazakhstan
Germany (introduced)

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the Russian sturgeon endangered?

The Russian sturgeon’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Critically endangered” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the Russian sturgeon?

The Russian sturgeon (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii) is a ray-finned fish in the order Acipenseriformes and the family Acipenseridae, genus Acipenser. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the Russian sturgeon

The Russian sturgeon (Huso gueldenstaedtii), also known as the diamond sturgeon or Danube sturgeon, is a species of fish in the family Acipenseridae. It is found in Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Romania, Russia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Ukraine. It is also found in the Caspian Sea. This fish can grow up to about 235 cm (93 in) and weigh 115 kg (254 lb). Russian sturgeon mature and reproduce slowly, making them highly vulnerable to fishing.

Prior to 2025, it was placed in the genus Acipenser, but this placement was found to be paraphyletic, and it is more accurately placed in the genus Huso.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Russian sturgeon (revision 1338988900), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q747645 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).