Main Steps and Proposals for a Recovery Plan of Sturgeon in the Guadalquivir River (Spain)

Sturgeons in the Guadalquivir area predate the appearance of humans, but there is historical evidence of use of sturgeons in this region at least since the period of the Phoenicians, until human activity exterminated these fish in the twentieth century. During the middle of the twentieth century. the sturgeon was actively caught for caviar production. Caviar was produced from the two autochthonous species of the area, Acipenser sturin and A. naccarii. The idea of recovering the Guadalquivir Sturgeons is not new. Russian scientists who worked in the caviar factory made the request and Spanish naturalists of the period discussed the possibility in their publications. More recently, the controversy was reopened when it was demonstrated that a good part of the Guadalquivir sturgeons were the species A. naccarii, and, thanks to the efforts of different groups, aquaculture had provided sufficient specimens of this species with adequate quality to guarantee proper recovery. The problem arose because the government did not act. It recognized the ecological and social value of the recovery, but it did not take action, stating that 'some scientists' did not recognize A. naccarii as autochthonous of the Guadalquivir. Today, nobody who acts in good faith can doubt that A. naccarii is autochthonous; this is no longer disputed. Now the question is how to proceed with the recovery.