The Syr Darya sturgeon (Pseudoscaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi), or Syr Darya shovelnose sturgeon,[1] is a species of fish in the family Acipenseridae. It is found in Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, where it is endemic to the Syr Darya River and, before its drainage, the Aral Sea. Due to the loss of its breeding site and damming projects over the length of the river, it is currently considered Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct), as no sightings have been reported since the 1960s.[1] The sturgeon is among the 25 "most wanted lost" species that are the focus of Re:wild’s "Search for Lost Species" initiative.[5]

Syr Darya sturgeon
A Syr Darya sturgeon

Critically endangered, possibly extinct  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Acipenseriformes
Family: Acipenseridae
Genus: Pseudoscaphirhynchus
Species:
P. fedtschenkoi
Binomial name
Pseudoscaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi
(Kessler, 1872)
Synonyms[3][4]
  • Scaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi Kessler 1872
  • Kessleria fedtschenkoi (Kessler 1872)
  • Pseudoscaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi f. brevirostris Berg 1905
  • Pseudoscaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi f. intermedia Berg 1905
  • Pseudoscaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi f. longirostris Berg 1905
Syr Darya sturgeon depicted on a postage stamp from Tajikistan

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Mugue, N. & Karimov, B. (2022). "Pseudoscaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2022: e.T18599A156719554. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T18599A156719554.en. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
  2. ^ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  3. ^ Froese, R.; Pauly, D. (2017). "Acipenseridae". FishBase version (02/2017). Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  4. ^ Van Der Laan, Richard; Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ronald (11 November 2014). "Family-group names of Recent fishes". Zootaxa. 3882 (1): 1–230. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3882.1.1. PMID 25543675.
  5. ^ "The Search for Lost Species". Global Wildlife Conservation. Retrieved 2 June 2017.