Hepatic Burdens of PCB and PCDD/F Congeners in Federally Endangered Shortnose Sturgeon and Atlantic Sturgeon from the Hudson River, New York, USA: Burden Patterns and Potential Consequences in Offspring

Two Distinct Life History Strategies of Atlantic Sturgeon in the Ogeechee River, Georgia

“…Four of these were designated as endangered (including that in the South Atlantic DPS (Figure 1)), and the fifth, in the Gulf of Maine, was designated as threatened [4]. Despite the imposition of these measures, there is continuing concern regarding the status of Atlantic sturgeon as a whole and its individual populations because of bycatch in coastal fisheries and multiple threats in spawning and non-natal rivers, including altered habitats, vessel strikes, impaired water quality, and chemical pollution [5]. Historically, Atlantic sturgeon were believed to spawn in up to 38 rivers, extending from the St. Lawrence River, Quebec to the St. Marys River, Florida [6].…”

“…They return to natal rivers to spawn at ages ranging from 5 to 19 years in South Carolina rivers, 11 to 21 years in the Hudson River, and 22 to 34 years in Canadian rivers [15]. During their prolonged migrations to distant coastal locales and non-natal estuaries, Atlantic sturgeon are vulnerable to stressors from the litany of anthropogenic threats listed above [5]. Thus, the ability to uniquely identify the natal rivers of specimens in coastal waters and nonnatal estuaries permits the quantification of the impacts of stressors in distant waters on individual spawning populations and DPS.…”