The Good Sturgeon Guide
in association with
Sturgeon For Garden Ponds
Photo © Derek Haslam
by Graham Quick & Terry White
Orchard Fisheries
The pond keepers guide to keeping and looking after sturgeon in a garden pond.
This guide covers the most common species of sturgeon found for sale in the UK, the sizes you can expect them to reach in a suitable sized garden pond (not the maximum recorded wild size) and basic husbandry techniques for keeping them alive and in good condition alongside other pond inhabitants. ![[This work is copyright © 2000-2009 www.pond-life.me.uk]](../images/other/spacer.gif){kind=small}
How to safely treat sturgeon and what you can use to treat other fish in your pond without harming them.
Their requirements of water quality, oxygen and food. Suggested minimum pond sizes required and necessary equipment needed.
Sturgeon ponds
Photo © Terry Williams
Sturgeon do very well in ponds suitable for Koi normally they are larger and deeper than goldfish or wildlife ponds and vegetation free(small sturgeon often can become trapped in aquatic plants as they can not reverse paddle with their fixed pectoral fins). An absolute minimum of 1000 gallons for the smallest species (Sterlet) but preferably twice to three times that. A water pump and adequate filter system is a must, along with an air pump. Please, please, please do not keep sturgeon in fish tanks they are just not suitable for a fish that can grow as quickly as small sturgeon can.
Sturgeon species
Photo © Terry Williams
Acipenseridae (Sturgeons) a family of fishes much, much older than the true bony fishes that developed around 250 - 200 million years ago, the species present today date back around 50 million years but still keep there primitive characteristics such as an asymmetrical (hererocercal) tail fins and Ganoid scales. They are found exclusively in the northern hemisphere and can be identified by five rows of bony angular plates inserted in the skin of the body. The mouth is under slung, inline of the eyes and there are 4 barbels in front of the mouth.
The family is divided into two sub-families Acipenserinae and Scaphirhynchinae each subfamily is made up of two Genus, Acipenser and Huso for the subfamily Acipenserinae contains the species we will concentrate on in this document.
There are over 20 different species in the two Genus and quite a few hybrids but only a few are normally available to keep in ponds.
- Siberian Sturgeon (Acipenser baerii)
- Stellate Sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus)
- Sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus)
- Diamond Sturgeon / Russian Sturgeon / Gold Spot Sturgeon (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii)
- Beluga Sturgeon / Great Sturgeon (Huso huso)
How to feed your sturgeon
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"Feeding sturgeons and koi" video by Terry Williams
Sturgeon cannot digest plant proteins (the bacteria and enzymes to do so are not present in their stomachs) so their food needs a high fish meal / shrimp meal content. Avoid foods made from soya and wheat as the fish may well eat it but it will not do them any good, the fish will become skinny and bent as they live off their own muscle tissue and liver for a while before they die. Under ideal conditions in at summer temperatures sturgeon require between 2 - 3 % of their body weight per day depending on their size to grow at their correct natural rate.
Like most fish sturgeon need to feed regularly through out the day as their gut is short and has a small capacity, so a number of small feeds are better than one large one.
Due to the slow sedate nature of sturgeon it important that you feed the other fish in the pond first to stop them eating all of the sturgeon food. Once fed the sinking food can be thrown in for sturgeon. Unfortunately the sinking food is more often than not better than most floating food, so the other fish will rush after it before the sturgeon have realised there is any food to eat. Sturgeon normally live in depths where little light reaches, as you will have noticed they do not react well to sudden movement, so the need for good eye sight is not important. They mainly rely on light-dark differences not specific shapes or shades of grey. This means they are unable to see food they must run over it with their 'feelers' that hang from their top lip which they then suck up with their tubed mouth parts.
Photo © Terry Williams
Spring: Sturgeon like any other fish become more active in spring as the temperatures begin to rise and will need an increase in food from their winter maintenance diet. Feed little and often rather than in one large go. The best times to feed are around dawn and dusk when the sturgeon are most active and seeking food.
Summer: Sturgeon will be feeding very well over the summer months so make sure plenty of food is available to them and the rest of your fish are well fed to decrease competition for the sturgeon food. (Other fish such as Koi and other carps will eat sturgeon food in preference to their own) Faster growing species should be putting on plenty of growth, Siberians and Diamonds can grow like weeds at summer temperatures.
Autumn: Sturgeon will be flattening up for the winter so keep the food going in but watch out for and remove un-eaten food after feeding.
Winter: Feed a few pellets at a time and wait until they are eaten before adding any more. Sturgeon will feed down to 4oC it is very important that you feed them as most sturgeon deaths over winter and early spring are due to starvation.
Orchard Fisheries Sturgeon Food
Orchard Fisheries sturgeon food is made and used by one of the largest Sturgeon farms in Europe. Obviously it has to be said that they growing the fish to increase the value, a Sturgeon farm is a business. The most important objective to get the best growth rate and least wastage for the least cost and in the quickest time.
Sturgeon Starter Food 2mm sinking pellets
44%(min) protein, 22% oil, 9% ash, 1.4% fibre Vitamins A, C, D3, E.
Formulated as complete food for small sturgeon under 6" long. Also makes good treat for carp, koi, tench, barbel, loach and other bottom feeding pond and tropical fish.
Ingredients: 52.3% fish meal, fish oil, feeding stimulator, wheat as binding agent, maize, soya meal, vitamin and mineral premix.
Vitamins: A 15000iu/kg, C 1000iu/kg (3mm pellets 200mg/kg), D3 2000iu/kg, E 200mg/kg.
Sturgeon Food 3mm, 6mm & 8mm sinking pellets
42%(min) protein (3mm pellets 44%), 18% oil (3mm pellets 20%), 9% ash, 1.7% fibre. Vitamins A, C, D3, E.
This food has been formulated especially for sturgeon but is great food for other bottom feeding fish without using vegetable proteins, which sturgeon can't digest.
Ingredients: 42% fish meal, fish oil, wheat as binding agent, vitamin and mineral premix.
Vitamins: A 15000iu/kg, C 1000iu/kg (3mm pellets 200mg/kg), D3 2000iu/kg, E 200mg/kg.
Only the best ingredients are used. All foods are GM free.
Pellet to Sturgeon size
- 2mm pellet Starter Diet Sturgeon 10-20cm (4-8in)
- 3mm pellet Sturgeon 20-36cm (8-14in)
- 6mm pellet Sturgeon 36-61cm (14-24in)
- 8mm pellet Sturgeon over 61cm (24in) except Stellatus or Sterlets; use 6mm until 76cm (30in)
Orchard Fisheries Sturgeon / Sterlet Food Pellets for sale. Buy online or order by phone.
If you are looking for sturgeons and sterlets for sale in the UK please see our Links page and the Marketplace section on our forums.
Sturgeon problems
Nearly all problems are either food, water quality or oxygen related so rather obviously:
Always make sure the oxygen levels are good, above 6mg/ltr minimum, get an air pump to back up your main pond pump it's cheaper than a new fish and you will need one to supplement oxygen in the summer. (Get one before you have problems as when things do go wrong it's often too late) and use the correct food. (Check the label if it is high in cereals it is no good for sturgeon.)
Have some test kits handy (Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, pH and Oxygen) and check your water quality first if you suspect a problem (treatments generally cost more than test kits and will only make a water quality problem worse.)
Sturgeon requirements
Photo © Terry Williams
Good water conditions for sturgeon are Ammonia 0.0mg/l, Nitrite less than 0.25 mg/l, Nitrate less than 150 mg/l. pH should be above 7.0 and below 9 (i.e. low alkali). High oxygen levels, more than 6mg/l and cool water temperatures less than 28oC.
Small sturgeon are better grown in cool temperatures 10-15oC but as their size increases to about 3-4" (7.5 to 10cm) the fish can tolerate the lower oxygen levels of temperatures up to 22oC. Temperatures over this slows down the food uptake of the sturgeon and can lead to metabolic overload most sturgeon will not eat once the temperature is over 26oC. Generally the majority of sturgeon species are happier in water under or around 20oC.
Good food (and plenty of it) high in oil, low in vegetable content. 40%+ protein which is mostly fish meal based not high in cereals (i.e. Wheat or soya, a small amount is OK and used as a binding agent) 16% fish oil. Not TROUT food (Which is mostly soya based these days to keep the costs down). Get these requirements right (Not necessarily in this order) but all together will help you to keep your sturgeon healthy.
Treatments to avoid
There are many treatments that are used in garden ponds that are deadly to sturgeon most are algaecides for the control of 'green water' or 'blanket weed' others are for treating parasites. Look on the label or check with the store / manufacturer, if they are unwilling or unable to say avoid the treatment. Avoid treatments with Copper sulphate / CuSO4 , Formalin / formaldehyde, Potassium permanganate / KMnO4 or any treatments that state not to be used with Golden Orfe (Leciscus sp.) or Rudd (Scardinius reythrophathalmus) as they are more than likely to kill sturgeon.
Treatments that are safe for sturgeon
Photo © Terry Williams
Sturgeon generally have few problems if their conditions and food are right but they can have some parasites. Treat them with salt (pure cooking or dish washer salt, not table salt) in the form of a bath 15gm per litre / 2oz per gallon for a maximum of 15 minutes ever other day for 3 or 4 treatments. (NB. Sterlets being a true freshwater fish may not like salt this strong, and Koi certainly won't).
Acriflavine: for bacterial infections, fin rot and ulcers.
Malachite Green: for fungus, whitespot and costia (Not a malachite and formalin mixture).
Chloramine T: for fungus, whitespot and bacterial gill problems.
Always supply extra aeration when treating and reduce feed levels by half, this puts less strain on the fishes oxygen requirements. If in doubt about what to treat check with a microscope or with your local vet ask them to refer you to a local competent fish specialist.
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