Albino sterlets can be seen at the Primorsky Aquarium.
Two specimens of the sterlet, which is a sturgeon species, have been added to the “Rivers and Lakes” exhibit. The newcomers are notable for their rare colour – unlike most representatives of the species with the typical grey colouration, they are ivory-white. The albino sterlets are exhibited at the Primorsky Aquarium for the first time, and prior to that, residents of Primorsky kray could see them only in the pavilions of the 10th Eastern Economic Forum.
The sterlets are sharing the tank with young river perches. Both sterlets, and perches occur in the European part of Russia and in Siberia, the eastern limit of their distribution is Lake Baikal.
The sterlet is the most graceful of all giant sturgeon species; an adult fish does not exceed a length of 1.25 m. The sterlets placed in the Aquarium exhibit were bred last May, and since then they have grown to 20 cm long. The sterlet is a non-predatory fish, it feeds on benthic invertebrates: snails, mussels, worms and crustaceans.
Albino sturgeons are found only rarely in nature. The unusual-looking fish produce golden-coloured roe instead of black one. Caviar made of the roe is the most expensive one in the world, and it is the reason due to which albinos are bred in artificial conditions.
