Alabama Sturgeon
A small shovel-nosed sturgeon persists at vanishingly low numbers in the Alabama River system and is not an ethical sighting target.
Artwork inspired by Lonnie Holley
Its flattened snout, rows of bony scutes, and long tail filament fit life near the bottom of large turbid rivers. Reliable separation from young Gulf sturgeon requires expertise; decades can pass with only a handful of confirmed captures.
Dams, channel modification, altered flow, and isolation transformed the connected river habitat in which the species evolved. The useful field lesson is landscape-scale: protect flow, passage, gravel-sand habitat, and water quality rather than searching for an individual.
- Surviving basin
- Alabama
- Bottom profile
- shovel snout
- River requirement
- large turbid river
Quick guide
- Recognition
- Small sturgeon with a flattened shovel-like snout, bony scutes, and elongated upper tail lobe.
- Habitat
- Deep channels and flowing reaches of the Mobile River basin, especially the Alabama River.
Recognize it through habitat and behavior
- Recognition
- Small sturgeon with a flattened shovel-like snout, bony scutes, and elongated upper tail lobe.
- Habitat
- Deep channels and flowing reaches of the Mobile River basin, especially the Alabama River.
- Ecology
- Bottom-feeds on aquatic invertebrates and requires connected river processes.
- Observe responsibly
- Never target, handle, or publicize capture locations; learn from agency monitoring.
Good to know
Never target, handle, or publicize capture locations; learn from agency monitoring. Present year-round; encounter probability is exceptionally low and targeted pursuit is inappropriate.
Notice these
- shovel snout
- bony scutes
- large turbid river