Sturgeon are among the most endangered fish groups on Earth. Their welfare in wild fisheries, caviar aquaculture, and captive breeding programmes is a growing concern.
Traditional caviar production kills the female fish, typically by clubbing, to extract eggs. Modern aquaculture caviar production using hormones to strip eggs without killing females represents a significant welfare improvement, but fish still experience the stress of hormonal treatment and repeated handling. Wild sturgeon caught by poachers are frequently killed by crude methods with no welfare consideration. Captive breeding programmes hold sturgeon in conditions that may not provide adequate space for long-lived, large-bodied fish. Sturgeon are ecologically important bottom feeders whose decline affects river ecosystem health.