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Sturgeon Recovery Plan in the Rhône River (France): Preliminary Results on Species Determination and Habitat Suitability

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Biology, Conservation and Sustainable Development of Sturgeons

Part of the book series: Fish & Fisheries Series ((FIFI,volume 29))

Abstract

Sturgeons were living in the Rhône River (France) until their complete extirpation in the mid 1970s. They disappeared without a certainty about species identity and about sympatry between Acipenser sturio and Acipenser naccarii, as occurred in the Po and Guadalquivir rivers. Preliminary studies were launched in 2005 by the Migrateurs Rhône Méditerranée (MRM) association to overcome this lack of knowledge and to evaluate the lower Rhône River environment suitability for sturgeon. Twelve sturgeon specimens from the Rhône River and the French Mediterranean coast were found in museums and samples for genetic analyses were taken from 10 of them (analyses in progress). Genetic analyses (cytochrome b) on five sturgeon bone remain (among 2500 remains available) samples more than 2000 years old found in the city of Arles, close to the Rhône River, clearly show that A. sturio was living in this river. Morphological comparisons between ancient bone remains and recent skeletons from A. sturio and A. naccarii are in progress. Environment studies show the existence of possible suitable habitats for sturgeon in the Rhône river, mainly spawning and feeding grounds. This should be confirmed by more precise studies. All these preliminary results are very encouraging regarding the possible restoration of sturgeon in the Rhône River.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Association Migrateurs Rhône Méditerranée, Z.I. du port Fluvial, Chemin des Ségonneaux, Arles, France

    Laurent Brosse

  2. Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution, UMR 5554, UM2/CNRS Université Montpellier II CC 065, Place Eugène Bataillon, Montpellier Cedex, France

    Patrick Berrebi

  3. Laboratoire d’archéozoologie, UMR 6130, CNRS-Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Valbonne, France

    Nathalie Desse-Berset

  4. Cemagref, UR EPBX, F-33612, Cestas Cedex, France

    Mario Lepage

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  1. Laurent Brosse
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  3. Nathalie Desse-Berset
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  4. Mario Lepage
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Granada, Spain

    Ramón Carmona , Manuel García-Gallego  & Manuel Ruiz-Rejón ,  & 

  2. Department of Research and Development, Sierra Nevada Fish Farm, Spain

    Alberto Domezain

  3. University of Cadiz, Spain

    José Antonio Hernando

  4. University of Sevilla, Spain

    Fernando Rodríguez

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Brosse, L., Berrebi, P., Desse-Berset, N., Lepage, M. (2009). Sturgeon Recovery Plan in the Rhône River (France): Preliminary Results on Species Determination and Habitat Suitability. In: Carmona, R., Domezain, A., García-Gallego, M., Hernando, J.A., Rodríguez, F., Ruiz-Rejón, M. (eds) Biology, Conservation and Sustainable Development of Sturgeons. Fish & Fisheries Series, vol 29. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-8437-9_25

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