Fishes of the JVestet^n North Atlantic 5 i 



at water temperatures ranging between 56°— 64°F. Among 63 adult females, three 

 were "pasters"; i. e. with the roe in the form of a slimy, grayish white paste consisting 

 of squeezed eggs, white yolks, and ruptured membranes. Between the loth and 22nd 

 of May, seven females with running roe and three males with ripe milt were taken 

 during the act of spawning. 



Little is known about the breeding grounds or spawning behavior along the 

 rest of the Atlantic coast. Apparently the sexually mature individuals ascend the St. 

 Lawrence River through deep channels that are kept free of nets because of navigation, 

 and it is probable that spawning takes place in pools below waterfalls of certain St. 

 Lawrence tributaries, for instance the Batiscan River along the southern shore. 

 Moreover, there are several rivers along the northern shore (Riviere-aux-Outardes, for 

 instance) where A. oxyrhynchus spawn. It is probable that the spent fish return gradu- 

 ally to salt water. 



The eggs when laid are light to dark brown. The outside membrane of ripe eggs 

 readily imbibes water and becomes glutinous and sticky. Being demersal and adhesive, 

 they become attached to weeds, stones, and so forth, and it is believed that the eggs 

 are scattered over a wide area. There is no evidence of prenatal care, such as prepara- 

 tion of a nest area {65: 267-268; 39: 73). 



The diameter of ripe eggs is 2.5 or 2.6 mm; using this size as a basis for esti- 

 mates, there would then be 168,000 eggs per gallon (U.S.) and 800,000—2,400,000 

 eggs per fish {65: 268; 25: 186). 



The largest ripe female examined by us, caught on June 23, 1954, in the St. 

 Lawrence River at Ile-aux-Patins, Quebec, was 8 feet 9 inches TL (8 ft. 2.5 in. FL), 

 weighed 352 pounds, and would have spawned in about a week; its ovary weighed 91 

 pounds and contained an estimated total of 3,755,745 eggs. No female /I. oxyrhynchus 

 have been reported as being ready to spawn before reaching at least 1 50 pounds and an 

 age of about 10 years. The testes of the smallest ripe male encountered during this 

 study, a fish of 69 inches TL (60 in. FL) and 70 pounds, taken in the St. Lawrence 

 River at St. Andre de Kamouraska on June 2, 1949, weighed 3 pounds 13 ounces. 



General Habits. Sturgeon are bottom fish and are seldom seen except when taken 

 in nets or when jumping. It is of interest that this relatively sluggish species is capable 

 of making powerful jumps (p. 30). In the opinion of fishermen, at least in Quebec, 

 Sturgeon jump to rid themselves of attached lampreys. 



Very little appears to be known about the behavior of the Sturgeon in salt water. 

 It is astonishing how easily these fish can adapt to a sudden change from salt to fresh 

 water, or vice versa. Some tagged specimens were forced to abruptly change habitats 

 at least twice during the same season, apparently without harmful results, because 

 they were recaptured again alive. 



Thus far the actual movements of A. oxyrhynchus have been studied by means of 

 tagging in Quebec only.** During five years, 1945— 1949, a total of 1,948 was liberated 



43. For details, including a photograph of a tagged Sturgeon, see Vladykov (So: 65-69; 76: 47). Recently in Oregon 

 several White Sturgeon [A . transmontanus) were marked with Peterson modified tags {58: 4-5). 



