@conference{
author = "Cvijanović, Gorčin and Adnađević, Tanja and Jarić, Ivan and Jojić, Vida and Marić, Saša and Lenhardt, Mirjana",
year = "2016",
abstract = "Despite sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus L.) being a less important resource regarding caviar
production, their populations have experienced a decline during the 20th century
throughout its range, mainly due to poorly regulated fishery, pollution, habitat
fragmentation and habitat loss. Stocking programs are implemented throughout Danube
River basin, with Upper Danube populations being dependent on continuous stocking
efforts, while commercial exploitation of wild stocks in the Middle and Lower Danube
has to be compensated with stocking of larvae, fingerlings and juveniles. Selection of
proper specimens for stocking programs should be carefully conducted, since it can lead
to deleterious impact, such as reduction of effective population size, inbreeding and
outbreeding depression, and loss of locally adapted alleles. Therefore, natural
populations should be examined genetically both before and after release of hatcheryreared
juveniles. Our research on Middle and Lower Danube sterlet, suggests that
genetic variability should be attributed almost entirely to individual variability, with a
weak population structure and no clear evidence of a bottleneck and inbreeding within
populations. Also, specimens used for the supportive stocking in the Tisza River in
Hungary originated from the Danube River, so the information about gene flow between
these rivers should be carefully considered. Additionally, most of breeding programs are
focused on genetic diversity and do not acknowledge complexities of wild populations
fitness architecture. Although Middle and Lower Danube dams are recent, in regard to
sterlet population time, they create more lentic conditions that do not suit sterlet
rheophilous nature. Both our previous and current morphometric research suggests that
hatchery-reared sterlet specimens are not necessarily suited for stocking of certain
Danube River sections. Lower Danube section have a different water flow regime and
suspended sediment discharge than those in Middle Danube and in Lower Tisza River,
so the sterlet specimens are differently adapted to their environment, which is in
concordance with our findings. We suggest that both shape analysis and genetic analysis
should be applied in restocking programs.",
publisher = "Belgrade: Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, University of Belgrade",
journal = "Fitfish Annual Conference; 2016 Apr 22; Belgrade, Serbia",
title = "Danube sterlet morphometrics and genetic – guidelines for restocking programs",
pages = "50",
url = "https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_ibiss_5424"
}