After a century away, sturgeons return to Swedish waters

A century after it disappeared from Swedish waters, scientists in June embarked on a 10-year project to reintroduce the Atlantic sturgeon to a cleaned-up river in the west of the country.In the opening act, 100 young sturgeons—transferred from a farm in Germany—were introduced into the waters of Gota alv."To be a person who has the possibility to re-introduce a species that has been extinct nationally, it's a gift," biologist Dan Calderon, who came up with the idea, told AFP."It's probably the best thing I've done," Calderon said.Named "Storens aterkomst" (The return of the sturgeon), the project is led by the Swedish Anglers Association, which is working with several universities and Gothenburg's museum of natural history.The species lived in the river until the late 19th century, but gradually disappeared due to overfishing and pollution.Today, the river is much cleaner and conditions are again right for the sturgeon, which can measure over five meters (16 feet) and weigh more ...