5-foot-long sturgeon washes ashore in Nyack
The New York state Department of Environmental Conservation was notified by someone about the dead sturgeon.
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A really big fish washed ashore recently in Nyack.
"They're considered one of the oldest, bony fishes on the planet," says George Jackman, of Riverkeeper. "Recently, one was spotted in the Hudson by researchers using side scanning sonar that was 14 feet long. So, we have some big ones left in the Hudson."
Jackman has spent six years with the local environmental organization and is knowledgeable about fish, including sturgeon.
Jackman says the ancient animal is an endangered species, with the biggest threats to their survival being caught by fishermen going for other fish or being hit by boats.
The fish found in Nyack had two gashes.
"There was a paper I read by a master's student that they have a hard time avoiding ships.
They've been on the planet for 200 million years. It doesn't register in their revolutionary response because they have very few predators," says Jackman.
The New York state Department of Environmental Conservation was notified by someone about the dead sturgeon.
Alerting the agency in these instances is a must-do so they can track the population, according to Jackman.
"It's not growing. It's not expanding. It's not recovering. We're concerned that these fish are in peril. They're endangered for a reason," says Jackman.
