Within the territory of Russian Federation there are many reservoirs that are home to the most amazing creatures. Among them is the beluga fish, which is the largest predatory fish with a unique appearance, behavior and characteristics. Previously, the animal was considered very common, but the development of civilization and the prosperity of poaching significantly harmed the population.

The main advantage of representatives of the species is the affordable cost.... And although fish meat is quite tough, it is no worse in taste than other varieties of the sturgeon family. At the same time, the price per kilogram is only 15 US dollars, which is very cheap.

However, during spawning, the creature provides the most valuable product - beluga caviar, which is considered one of the most elite and expensive, which contributes to the prosperity of illegal fishing. For example, albino beluga caviar is sold in strictly limited quantities at a price of 18,500 euros per kilogram. For a year, only 8-10 kilograms of a rare product enter the European market.

Under natural conditions, the number is so small that the existence of the beluga depends only on the functioning of fish farms and private reservoirs.

As for the sturgeon family itself, the most ancient species of fish with a long history belong to it. They are distinguished by their characteristic appearance, as well as the presence of five rows of bony scutes, which are located along the elongated body.

From other representatives of the sturgeon family, the beluga received an elongated head, while in the lower part there are 4 antennae that reach the mouth opening. In addition, some properties of cartilaginous creatures that are more primitive in terms of structure are noticed in its structure, but the beluga has an elastic cartilaginous chord at the base of the skeleton, which allows it to fully function and develop even in the absence of vertebrae.

The list of the most common sturgeon species includes the following:

1. Stellate sturgeon.
2. Kuluga.
3. Beluga.
4. Sterlet.

These fish are impressive in size, but the true record holder is the beluga. The body length of the fish reaches 4 meters, and the weight sometimes exceeds 1000 kilograms. And although the bulk of the population is concentrated within the Black and Caspian Seas, during the spawning season, the species massively moves to freshwater rivers, literally filling them.

As mentioned above, beluga is the largest freshwater fish, which can weigh from 50 to 1000 kilograms, depending on living conditions. As for the individuals that are caught on an industrial scale, they reach 50-80 kilograms of weight. The life span of some belugas is about 100 years.

A feature of a predator is the ability to hunt from the very first days of its existence. Those creatures that spend a significant part of their time in the seas are the most inveterate predators, since they mainly eat fish. In natural habitat, the beluga forms hybrid varieties, crossing with the following sturgeon species:

1. With sterlet - the result is a fish called "bester", which is the most popular beluga hybrid. It is grown for industrial purposes, which is associated with the high taste of the meat obtained during processing. Also, the product has a high nutritional value, which increases the demand for cultivation.
2. Sevruga.
3. A thorn fish.
4. Sturgeon.

Such hybrids inhabit the Azov Sea basin and some reservoirs.

If you want to know what a beluga looks like, pay attention to the following external characteristics of the species:

1. The fish has a long body that resembles a large gray spindle with light shades in the belly.
2. The caudal fin is unequal-lobed and has an upper lobe that is twice the size of the lower one.

Also, the beluga is distinguished by a pointed, but short snout, under which there is a huge crescent-shaped mouth and two pair of whiskers with pronounced leaf-like appendages along the entire length of each antenna.

In addition to its impressive size, the beluga is also distinguished by a thick cylindrical body. The pointed nose is slightly translucent due to the absence of bony scutes. Bony scutes on the head and sides are not sufficiently developed, while their number on the back is 13 units, on the sides - 40−45, and on the peritoneum - about 12.

This representative of the sturgeon family belongs to the group of anadromous creatures, so it can freely live in both fresh and salt water. To understand where the beluga is found in Russia, you need to pay attention to such seas with different salinity indicators.

1. Caspian and Azov (salinity here is low, and ranges from 12 to 13 ppm).
2. Black Sea (salinity indicators vary in the range of 17-18 ppm).
3. Mediterranean Sea (salinity is high, like in the ocean - about 35 ppm).

For laying beluga caviar en masse move to rivers:

As mentioned above, the beluga is a long-lived fish.that can live up to 100 years. And if the Pacific salmon spawns only once in a life, after which it dies, then the beluga is capable of giving offspring an unlimited number of times. After successful spawning, the adults go back to the sea, continuing to fatten up until the next spawning. Because of this lifestyle, they are called passages.

As for the caviar, it has a dark gray color with a characteristic silvery hue, as well as a rather large size (up to 2.5 millimeters in diameter). Caviar is deposited on the bottom, where it settles on all kinds of substrate. Newborn fry are also quite large, as they can be 15 to 24 mm long. After birth, they immediately go to sea, but sometimes it takes several years.

Sexual maturation ends in males at the age of 13-18, while females begin to spawn at the age of 16, and some at 27. Representatives of the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov differ early date maturation, the males living there leave for spawning at the age of 12.

The fertility of the beluga depends on the living conditions and food supply. As a rule, females of different sizes can produce about 500,000-1,000,000 eggs. In rare cases, this number rises to 5 million. At the same time, inhabitants of different rivers show different indicators of fertility. For example, individuals that live in the Volga and are about 2.5 meters long bring about 900 thousand eggs. Inhabitants of the Kura River with the same size hardly spawn 700 thousand eggs.

Comparing beluga meat with other fish meat, then it has a coarser structure, but incredible taste and nutritional value, due to which it is appreciated all over the world. On the basis of the beluga product, delicious balyk products are created, as well as a lot of cold and hot snacks.

The beluga also gives mankind delicious caviar, so fish is massively caught on an industrial scale, starting with individuals weighing 5 kilograms. Of course, in most cases, the weight significantly exceeds this indicator, because the animal quickly gains weight and grows to impressive sizes. And although the beluga is considered the longest-living fish in freshwater bodies, the maximum age of individuals that are grown on an industrial scale rarely exceeds 30-40 years.

Beluga is a common red fish, which arranges wintering camps in river pits, where it leaves at the end of autumn and waits for the spring season for spawning. Young individuals prefer river mouths or shallow sea areas.

Medium depths are suitable as winter quarters for older individuals that have already spawned and returned to the sea before the first frost. The largest individuals between the ages of 30-50 are found only in the deepest and most remote places. Due to their physiological properties, many of them are no longer able to reproduce offspring.

As soon as the first significant cold comes, the body of the fish is covered with a thick mucous layer, after which it falls into a state of numbness, being in it until the first heat. Before hibernating, the beluga fattens up and stores the necessary energy for several months. If you catch an individual at this time, then in its stomach it will be possible to find undigested mollusks, small crustaceans, and even a waterfowl that hibernates on rivers.

By the way, one should pay attention to one curious fact: if the beluga cannot find a suitable place for spawning, it may not start spawning. Such fastidiousness is especially noticeable in adults, who have reproduced offspring many times.

Food preferences and interesting facts

The main share of the beluga diet is occupied by shellfish., crustaceans and small representatives of other fish species. In the absence of such food, the predator easily attacks birds that swim or hunt freely in the water, as well as small freshwater creatures.

In the settlements of the Caspian coast, beluga is the main attribute of the fishing industry. And although the cost of fish meat is much lower than the cost of sturgeon (a kilogram of meat costs only 10-15 dollars), unique and valuable caviar is much more expensive than caviar of other red fish.

For example: "diamond" caviar is the most expensive product produced by extremely rare albino belugas. You will have to pay about 18,500 euros per kilogram of such a delicacy. The phenomenal cost is due to the rich golden color, as well as the rarity of the caviar itself, which can be mined about once every 100 years. According to statistics, no more than 8-10 kilograms of "diamond" caviar appears on the European market per year.

For industrial purposes, it is customary to catch individuals weighing 5 kilograms, but the largest beluga in the world weighed about 1500 kg and had a 7-meter body.

When going to spawn, fish are looking for promising places that meet their requirements. If they are absent, the spawn may not start at all.

Starting to spawn, the fish breaks the bottom and lays eggs surrounded by a large number of snags, reeds or water obstacles. Moreover, during the period of spawning, it gives about 1,000,000 eggs, which are of high value for true gourmets from all over the world.

If we divide the beluga into two main groups, then it will be:

1. Winter.
2. Spring.

Representatives of the species lead an exclusively bottom-pelagic lifestyle... In the sea they are found alone, and only periodically form groups that go to spawn in the rivers. Males reach sexual maturity at the age of 12-15 years, and females at 16-18 years. Given the fact that the fish is considered a long-liver, it can easily exist for more than 50-60 years, although such individuals are found less and less often.

Beluga, which is bred on fishing farms, reproduces only by artificial insemination. Thus, many hybrid varieties with unique external and physiological characteristics appeared.

The top of the hierarchical ladder of the noble sturgeon family is rightfully occupied by fish, surpassing its congeners not only with its gigantic size, but also with its high life expectancy. The largest beluga (not to be confused with beluga whales) can be safely attributed to the centenarians of the animal world, since a century is not uncommon for it.

Description of the species

The beginning of the evolution of sturgeon fish species, numbering about 210 - 240 million years, is considered the Triassic period of the planet's development. The heyday of the beluga and its relatives fell on the era of dinosaurs, which reigned on Earth about one hundred - two hundred million years ago. Still looks giant fish practically did not change.

What a beluga looks like: its torpedo-shaped body is securely enclosed in a shell of bone plates, and on the sides, the bone protrusions form a kind of paths. The muzzle of this fish is unusual, its appearance differs even from its closest relatives. The fused gill membranes form a free fold below the branchial space. The huge crescent-shaped mouth is bordered by small flattened whiskers with leaf-like appendages, providing the hostess with an excellent sense of smell. Developed coordination helps the fish to navigate in space, successfully complementing rather poor vision.

The color of an adult beluga is gray-brown on the back and light, almost white, on the belly.

Large, and sometimes just huge sizes, tasty and nutritious meat and valuable caviar have provided the beluga and its numerous relatives (sturgeon, sterlet, stellate sturgeon, kaluga) with the status of commercial fish. This led the entire family to the threat of extinction. Human activity leads to pollution, and sometimes to the complete destruction of habitual habitats; hydraulic structures change or block the paths to spawning grounds. The combination of these factors puts the beluga on the brink of extinction.

Habitat and food base

The question of what the beluga prefers to eat and where it lives is far from idle, since it allows you to find out the habits of this grandiose fish. The largest beluga is found in the waters of the Black, Mediterranean, Adriatic, Azov and Caspian seas. During the spawning season, it can be found in almost all large riversrelated to sea basins. First of all, these are the Volga, Don, Dnieper, Kama, Terek. Ichthyologists have established one interesting featurecharacteristic of large female beluga. Not having time to spawn for some reason, they fall asleep, remaining to winter in the river.

An adult beluga is an absolute predator. The range of her main gastronomic addictions is as follows:

• Fish that makes up the basic part of the beluga diet.
• Waterworms and insects, as a rule, serve as food for small individuals.
• Molluscs and arthropods.
• Cubs of Caspian seals. Such an unexpected object of hunting is used as food by representatives of the species that live exclusively in the basin of the Caspian Sea.

During the period of lack of food or a heightened sense of hunger, for example, after spawning, belugas are able to swallow objects that do not even remotely resemble their usual food. It seems absolutely logical that these spawned giants return to the sea, because only there they can find a sufficient amount of food. Instances that constantly live in fresh river water are significantly inferior in size to their marine counterparts.

Reproduction of the species

The beluga spawns exclusively in fresh water, for which mature individuals rise high upstream. The entry of spawners into the rivers differs in the seasons, which allows the species to be divided into two races: spring and autumn. The first begins to pass into fresh water at the end of January and remains there until the very moment of spawning, which usually begins in June. The autumn race takes the ascent along the river from August to December, often staying for the winter in deep river pools.

Sexual maturation in this species of sturgeon occurs rather late, and there are significant differences in timing. So, males become ready for reproduction by about twenty years, and the maturation of females ends only by 23-25.

Spawning features

Spawning in beluga occurs only a few times in its entire long life, but the fertility of this giant fish is simply amazing. Maybe that's why the unique species still inhabits the reservoirs of our planet.

There is an opinion that the number of eggs in a clutch can reach one million. But based on facts, the picture looks like this:

• The Volga beluga is large enough by modern standards in size (about 2.5 meters), lays about 940,000 eggs.
• Individuals of similar size, but living in Kura, are limited to 685,000.

The mass of spawned eggs also looks solid. Spawning clutch can weigh three to four hundred kilograms.

Ichthyologists have noticed another interesting point in the physiology of the beluga. The lack of a place suitable, according to the mother, for the babies, leads to the fact that the female refuses to spawn, and the eggs already ready for fertilization are gradually absorbed.

The spawning of this sturgeon species is a test of the ecological well-being of the reservoir.since it only happens in exclusively clean water... The survival rate of eggs is very low (no more than 10%), which does not contribute to the rapid replenishment of the population of this valuable fish. The incubation period is just over a week at a temperature of 12-14 C. The hatching fry first stay at the seaside or in river deltas.

Beluga record holders

The maximum weight of a beluga is another question that has not been fully clarified by ichthyologists. There are records showing specimens weighing up to two tons. However, unfortunately, there is no documentary evidence of these facts. ... So, the record holders:

Analysis shows that the overwhelming majority of evidence of catch of giant beluga specimens falls on the beginning of the last - the end of the nineteenth century. Significant changes in the ecological situation that characterize the present have led to the fact that fish of this species rarely reach gigantic sizes. The mass of the largest specimens caught within several recent years, does not exceed a quarter of a ton.

Fishing prospect

The inclusion of this species of sturgeon in the Red Book predetermined the introduction of a ban on its commercial fishing. Therefore, the only way to get a trophy specimen is sport fishing, which provides for the return of fish to their habitat.

Poaching is a real danger that poses a serious threat to the existence of not only the beluga, but the entire sturgeon family. Lovers of easy money do not take into account any prohibitions, or seasonality, or the need to preserve the population.

A lot of myths and legends are associated with this outlandish fish. - for example, the belief about the miraculous properties of the "beluga stone" extracted from her kidneys and resembling a chicken egg in appearance. It is used as a talisman during a storm and attracts fish to places visited by fishermen. The owner of such an amulet in the old days could demand any, even the most expensive, goods for it.

Attention, only TODAY!

Beluga is a unique fish that lives for a very long time, and its maximum age can reach hundreds of years. She can spawn more than once in her life, and after spawning she slides into the sea. Fecundity of females depends on their size and sometimes reaches about 500,000 eggs.

In nature, the beluga, whose photo can be viewed below, is an independent species, however, it can hybridize with sturgeon, sterlet, thorn and stellate sturgeon. Sturgeon species of hybrids are best grown in special pond farms.

This amazing fish is associated many legends and myths... For example, ancient fishermen said that the beluga stone very well protects a person from storms during a sea voyage and attracts a catch. This stone, according to fishermen, can be found in the kidneys of a beluga, and it looks like a chicken egg. Its owner in ancient times could exchange a stone for any expensive product. This legend is still believed, although there is no exact information about the reality of the stone.

Beluga differs from other sturgeon incredibly big mouth in the shape of a crescent, as evidenced by numerous photos. She also has a mustache that is flattened on the sides. In the intergill space there is a fold formed from membranes that have grown together.

There are bugs on the back, the first of which is at the head and is small in size compared to the rest. On long whiskers, small appendages are noted, differing in shape, like a leaf.

The body is incredibly thick, cylindrical in shape, and the nose is very short, in connection with which it is compared to a pig's snout. The body is colored ash gray, and its belly is slightly lighter. The maximum weight can be about 1500 kilograms with a body length of up to six meters.

Habitat and migration of fish

There is no specific habitat for beluga, since she is considered a checkpoint... Spawning occurs in freshwater bodies of water, into which fish enter from the sea. A large individual finds food only in the sea (Black, Caspian and Azov). More recently, the number of fish was huge and they did not stop fishing. To collect the priceless caviar, females were often caught.

In the Caspian Sea, the beluga can be found almost everywhere, and for spawning, it swims to the Volga, Ural, Terek and Kura. It also happened that from 1961 to 1989, the fish swam even to Volgograd, in connection with which a fish elevator was built there, old photos of which can be viewed on the Internet.

Beluga was seen in the Black Sea not far from the Crimean coast in places where there is hydrogen sulfide. Large enough individuals were seen near Zaporozhye and Dnepropetrovsk - their weight was about 300 kilograms.

What does beluga eat

Usually, big fish demands a lot of food, but in the river there is not enough food for it. That is why, in order to find food, she goes to sea. This fish is most often found in the water column at any depth. The main thing is that there are enough organisms suitable for nutrition. In the Black Sea, individuals live at a depth of 180 meters, and in the Caspian Sea - up to 140 meters. Younger individuals use invertebrates from the bottom of the sea as food. As soon as the Beluga women reach a size of ten centimeters, they begin to hunt for small fellows. You can see how the process of feeding them goes on in photos and videos on the Internet.

The largest individuals those that feed on small fish such as:

• Sea goby;
• Anchovy;
• Herring;
• Individuals of the carp family.

Fish breeding methods

Beluga males fully mature sexually at 14 years old, and females at 18 years old. Fish that have reached sexual maturity swim from the sea to freshwater reservoirs for the purpose of reproduction. Depending on the time when the beluga enters the river, distinguish between autumn and spring races:

• Spring swims into rivers from the end of January and stays there until May. She begins to spawn in June;
• Autumn enters the reservoir in August and remains there until December. As a rule, it hibernates in deep river pits, and begins to breed in the spring.

Fertilization of beluga eggs occurs in the same way as in other bone species - externally. During the spawning season, fishermen celebrate the jumping of fish from the reservoir, and many capture this in the photo. Experts suggest that she does this to facilitate the release of eggs. The number of eggs varies between 200,000 and 8,000,000. Since the eggs are sticky, they adhere very well to stones. At an air temperature of 12.6-13.8 degrees, the incubation period lasts about eight days, and the fry hatch almost immediately and slide into the sea.

Beluga is the largest fish

Catching this unique fish has been carried out for a very long time, so it is not for nothing that called the royal fish... The largest fish caught, 4.17 meters long and weighing about 1 ton, is presented in the Museum of Tatarstan. Those who do not have the opportunity to admire this "miracle" live can see the fish in the photo.

Of course, this beluga is not the largest, since there are cases of catching a nine-meter specimen weighing about 2 tons. Today it is impossible to catch such a huge fish, because the pace of catching it does not allow the beluga to quickly gain such a mass.

Unique beluga fish

Hello everyone! Today we'll talk about a fish like Beluga. This is not an ordinary fish. This fish is on the verge of extinction. Why is a fish because it reaches very large sizes in growth in weight, and can also live for about a hundred years. It can also be called a sad fish because of its appearance... Well, now let's talk about everything in order.

Beluga from the genus of sturgeon. He does not have a permanent place of residence, therefore, it is considered a semi-checkpoint. Spawning in rivers lives in the seas and rivers. Why can't we call it completely marine or freshwater fish?

The fact is that large individuals switch to seafood only when there is not enough food for them in the rivers. To a certain size, she can live peacefully in rivers and creeks, but when food begins to be scarce then she switches to sea inhabitants. The diet includes herring, gobies, tulka, in one word a predator. In rivers they eat everything they can catch from roach to crucian carp. The Black, Azov, Caspian Sea is in these seas that the beluga lives.

What is the largest beluga caught

As for the size, the largest Beluga, according to unconfirmed reports, weighed over two tons and was about nine meters long. If the information can confirm then the beluga can easily be considered the largest freshwater fish on the planet.

There is also accurate data on the fish already caught. So in 1827, the weight of fish caught in the lower reaches of the Volga River amounted to one and a half tons of 1500 kg. In the same place in the Volga in 1922, the catch amounted to 75 poods, which by our standards is about 1224 kg. The head weighed 146 kg, and there were almost 259 kg of caviar in it. It’s not even possible to imagine, this is how the catch, the whole village can be provided with meat and there’s still some left for ourselves.

IN present time Such giants are practically not caught, although here is an example for you relatively not so long ago, but already in the last century, in 1970, a beluga weighing 1000 kg was caught for almost 100 kg of caviar. Due to its delicious meat and high weight, it was caught on an industrial scale. The average fishing weight is 50-70 kg.

Beluga is a long resident of freshwater fish

Beluga is a long-lived inhabitant of fish and can live for 100 years. It can spawn many times, unlike its fellow Pacific salmon, which spawn only once in a lifetime, and die after spawning.

These giants become completely ready for reproduction almost like people. Well, judge by the males themselves, mature by the age of 15-18, and the females not earlier than at 16-27 years. The average number of set eggs is considered to be about 715 thousand eggs. The fertility of the beluga depends on the size of the female, as well as on the habitat. In the Volga beluga, this number ranges from 500 thousand to a million, and the Kura beluga in the same size give 640 thousand eggs. It all depends on the habitat and on the living conditions.

The most expensive caviar is beluga

As for the caviar itself. Beluga eggs are rather large, 1.4-2.5 mm. The weight of the eggs is almost half the weight of the female. Has a pleasant delicate nutty flavor.

A dark gray color, a shiny shade, a strong smell, all this made the caviar so tasty that on the black market in Russia, a buyer is ready to pay about 620 euros per kg for such a product without bargaining. Abroad, for beluga caviar, you can get about 7000 Euros. This price depends on the taste of this caviar and on the fact that in Russia you cannot officially buy or sell beluga caviar anywhere. All transactions are carried out under a black flag.

Today in Russia there is a ban on catching beluga, as it is on the verge of extinction. Also, the beluga is listed in the Red Book. It is a rather risky business to catch beluga. Since the time frame is huge.

Taste qualities of beluga meat

Beluga meat, unlike other sturgeon breeds, is not fat and has a very small percentage of fat. But despite the fact that in the tsarist time there was much more beluga than now, only tsars, princes and boyars could taste its delicious meat. As you can see, even then they understood the meat, and considered the beluga meat something extraordinary and wonderful.

What secrets and beliefs Beluga is surrounded by

But the beluga was valuable not only for meat and caviar in those distant times. For example, almost every fisherman believed in the miraculous properties of the beluga stone. With the help of this miracle stone, you can heal people, heal entire villages. It was also believed that such an amulet brings happiness and a good catch to the one who possesses this stone.

It was flat and oval in shape, and was about the size of a hen's egg. It could be obtained in the kidneys of large belugas. It could also be sold at a very high price or changed to something expensive. But these rumors were never confirmed. But as they say, such stones took place, most likely they were high-quality forgeries by skilled craftsmen. There are also those who still believe in the miraculous properties of this stone, and in the fact that such a stone actually exists.

But the secrets of the beluga do not end there.

Many fishermen were similar in opinion that the beluga is a very poisonous fish. This belief was also not confirmed. But the fishermen were sure that such a fish could get sick with rabies like a dog or a cat. It was also believed that the beluga liver is poisonous. But no matter what our ancestors believe in, many are still inclined to believe that all these rumors were spread by the nobility.

So that commoners do not eat meat and do not catch beluga for good. It is possible that thanks to these rumors in the past, the beluga could grow up to 2 tons in weight and 9 meters in length.

Of the existing ones. It is mentioned in many historical documents. In Russia, this fish, brought to the capital city from the distant Caspian Sea, was served to the table of princes and kings. There are many descriptions of fantastic specimens reaching simply incredible sizes. It is not surprising that many people have a question about which of these testimonies is true and which is absolute fiction.

The largest beluga, the existence of which is confirmed by sufficient evidence, is striking in size. There are many applicants for this title, but, unfortunately, all the facts of the existence of giant beluga were recorded long ago. In our times, large specimens are almost never found.

Fish king

Beluga is a long-lived fish. She can live for a hundred years. During this time, the largest beluga can grow to a gigantic size of several meters. This species is considered one of the largest sea \u200b\u200bfish on the planet.

This fish spawns several times in its life. Experts say that beluga eggs are also gigantic - weighing up to half a ton.

For spawning, females go into rivers flowing into the sea, sometimes rising upstream for several kilometers. It is noteworthy that if there is no place suitable for the kids, then it will not, and the caviar inside will gradually dissolve.

Where does the beluga live?

The largest beluga is found in the Caspian, Black, Adriatic, Mediterranean and Azov seas.

During spawning, this fish can be found in the Volga, Terek, Don, Kama, Dnieper and many other rivers that flow into the seas. Large females that did not have time to spawn sometimes even for the winter remain in the rivers, hibernating.

How to catch the biggest beluga?

Today the commercial catch of this fish is prohibited. An equally strict veto was imposed on the collection of beluga caviar. But the law does not prohibit sport fishing. For her, special gear is used that minimally traumatizes the fish.

Fishing is one way to establish and document facts. The largest beluga in the world, caught by an enthusiast at a competition, will definitely be measured, weighed, photographed, and then released. If this did not happen regularly, we would know much less about the life of these amazing fish.

To catch the thunderstorm of the seas and rivers, you need to swim from the sea into the river about 3 kilometers away. Beluga is a voracious predator, fishermen have often found even ducks and seals in its stomach. When choosing bait, you should give preference to raw meat and fish. Professionals know: the beluga, although not aggressive, like, for example, the catfish, is quite capable of seriously misbehaving. In an attempt to get away from the fisherman, she may even turn the boat over.

The largest representatives: confirmed facts

The largest beluga caught in Russia in 1922 still holds the palm. She weighed 1224 kg and was caught in the Caspian Sea. was filled with caviar. The photo of the largest beluga is simply amazing. The king-fish is comparable in size to oceanic monsters: sharks, killer whales, narwhals.

Several other facts of catching gigantic belugas have been confirmed. In Kazan there is even during its lifetime weighed a whole ton. The 4.17 m long carcass was donated to the city by Nicholas II himself, and today the stuffed animal made from it is exhibited in the museum. Anyone can admire the huge fish.

The exhibit is a little more modest than the Kazan one in one of the museums of Astrakhan - the beluga caught in the Volga reached 966 kg. Another curious specimen during its lifetime had a length of almost 6 meters and a weight of up to a ton. His story is amazing. This beluga was caught by poachers, gutted the most valuable caviar, and thrown away the carcass. But of course, they simply could not help but know what kind of treasure fell into their hands! Fearing arrest for illegal activities, the poachers simply called the museum and told where they had thrown the carcass. It was damaged by careless cutting, but taxidermists managed to make a stuffed animal out of it.

The language barrier

Sometimes confusion arises for very unusual reasons. For example, for a very long time the word "beluga" in Russian was also applied to the whale, today known as beluga. Whales, of course, are larger than sturgeons, but this did not prevent the emergence of fantastic rumors. The eyewitness accounts of the catch of two-ton beluga most likely refer specifically to marine animals. By the way, belugas can sing. It was their singing that formed the basis of the phraseological unit “Howl like a beluga”. Of course, they cannot roar.

And in english language many sturgeon fish, including beluga, are often denoted by one word - sturgeon. This also often confuses the question of the largest beluga. Some of the announced contenders for the championship belong to other species of the Sturgeon family.

Human factor

The largest beluga caught in our time reaches only 2-3 centners. Uncontrolled fishing and harvesting of caviar, deterioration of environmental conditions, irrational use of resources - all this negatively affected the population. The number of beluga has decreased, the fish have shrunk, and spawn less often. The habitat has also decreased. For spawning, the beluga leaves very close to the rivers, trying to stay closer to the sea.

Perspectives

The largest beluga is a rarity today. Fortunately, humanity is trying to correct the mistakes of the past. Beluga is listed in the Red Book, the state is fighting against poaching. Today the beluga is artificially bred in many countries. Several hybrids have been developed in Russia, which have shown excellent viability and industrial value. This allows keeping the number of beluga in wildlife... The positive dynamics gives hope that the beautiful king fish will not sink into oblivion in the coming years, and someday will again amaze a person with its huge size.