CreatureData

Starry sturgeon

Acipenser stellatus Pallas, 1771

CRCritically Endangeredbony fish

The starry sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus) is a bony fish in the family Acipenseridae, order Acipenseriformes. It is also called the sevruga, star sturgeon or stellate sturgeon, and its scientific name was given by Pallas, 1771.

Starry sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus)
Photo: Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the starry sturgeon

The IUCN Red List assesses the starry sturgeon globally as Critically Endangered (CR), an IUCN threatened category.

Weight
Not recorded
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
coastalsrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
Not recorded
Migration
Migratorysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Critically Endangered (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Photos of the starry sturgeon

Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.

Starry sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus)
Post of Azerbaijan · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Where does the starry sturgeon live?

Not recorded

What is the starry sturgeon?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The starry sturgeon (Huso stellatus), also known as the stellate sturgeon or sevruga (Drakul, Persian: اوزون برون, and Turkish: Uzun Burun, lit. 'long nosed'), is a species of sturgeon. It is native to coastal and basin waters of the Black, Azov, Caspian and Aegean seas, but it has been extirpated from the last and it is predicted that the remaining natural population will follow soon due to overfishing.

The starry sturgeon is an anadromous species, which migrates up rivers to spawn.

It is considered critically endangered by the IUCN and international trade in this species (including its caviar) is restricted by CITES.

From the Wikipedia article “Starry sturgeon” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Starry_sturgeon&oldid=1369132790), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the starry sturgeon endangered?

The starry sturgeon is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List: it faces an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Critically Endangered species.

How is the starry sturgeon classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classChondrostei
  4. orderAcipenseriformes
  5. familyAcipenseridae
  6. genusAcipenser
  7. SpeciesAcipenser stellatus Pallas, 1771

Synonyms Acipenser helops, Acipenser ratzeburgii, Acipenser rostratus, Acipenser seuruga, Acipenser stellatus, Acipenser stellatus, Acipenser stellatus danubialis, Acipenser stellatus donensis, Acipenser stellatus illyricus, Huso stellatus, Sterletus stellatus

Other names and names in other languages (41)
  • SevrugaEnglish
  • Star sturgeonEnglish
  • Star sturgeonEnglish
  • Stellate sturgeonEnglish
  • Stellate sturgeonEnglish
  • Stellate sturgeonEnglish
  • Ag-BalygAzerbaijani
  • Uzun-burunAzerbaijani
  • ПъстругаBulgarian
  • pastrugаBulgarian
  • pastrugaBulgarian
  • SchergGerman
  • SternhausenGerman
  • ΑστροξυρίχιGreek
  • ΑστροξυρύχιGreek
  • AστροξυρύχιGreek
  • esturión estrelladoSpanish
  • tähtisampiFinnish
  • sevrugaFrench
  • esturgeon étoiléFrench
  • storione stellatoItalian
  • ShokkyrKazakh
  • žvaigždėtasis eršketasLithuanian
  • stersteurDutch
  • spitssnuitsteurDutch
  • siewrugaPolish
  • pastrugaRomanian
  • севрюгаRussian
  • Осетр севрюгаRussian
  • SevryugaRussian
  • ShevrigaRussian
  • sevrugaSlovenian
  • blini me yjeAlbanian
  • blini turigjatëAlbanian
  • stjärnstörSwedish
  • TiranaTurkmen
  • mersin baligiTurkish
  • mersin balığıTurkish
  • СеврюгаUkrainian
  • Осетер севрюгаUkrainian
  • Севрюга звичайнаUkrainian

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaITISWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the starry sturgeon

Other species in the same genus Acipenser.

EN, Endangered
Sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus)

Sterlet

Acipenser ruthenus

Acipenseridae

Ship

Acipenser nudiventris

AcipenseridaeNo free photo yet

CompareStarry sturgeon vs SterletStarry sturgeon vs European sea sturgeonStarry sturgeon vs Russian sturgeonStarry sturgeon vs Siberian sturgeon

Common questions

Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.

What kind of animal is the starry sturgeon?

The starry sturgeon is a bony fish. It belongs to the family Acipenseridae in the order Acipenseriformes.

What is the scientific name of the starry sturgeon?

The scientific name of the starry sturgeon is Acipenser stellatus, placed in the genus Acipenser.

Is the starry sturgeon endangered?

Yes. The IUCN Red List assesses the starry sturgeon globally as Critically Endangered (CR), which is an IUCN threatened category.

What other names does the starry sturgeon have?

The starry sturgeon is also called the sevruga, star sturgeon and stellate sturgeon.

Who named the starry sturgeon?

The starry sturgeon was named by Pallas, 1771.

What class does the starry sturgeon belong to?

The starry sturgeon belongs to the class Chondrostei, within the phylum Chordata.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

Embed a card for this animal on your own site

Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.

Preview the card

APA

CreatureData. (2026). Starry sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/starry-sturgeon

MLA

“Starry sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/starry-sturgeon.

BibTeX
@misc{starry_sturgeon_2026,
  title = {Starry sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/starry-sturgeon},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}