| Abstract [eng] |
The dissertation was prepared by Andrej Pilinkovskij, the chief specialist of the Eastern Region Pisciculture Division of the Department of Pisciculture (Fisheries Service under the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania). The dissertation was prepared in 2014-2022 at the Laboratory of Fish Ecology, Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Center. The dissertation presents the results of laboratory and field research on Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus Mitchill, 1815) and the reintroduction of this species in Lithuanian waters. Studies were carried out using various classical ichthyological, genetic and physiological methods as well as by applying specific methods – hydroacoustic tagging to study the migration of sturgeon juveniles. Using mtDNA markers, the genetic structure of the sturgeons exhibited and stored in the repositories at the Kaunas Tadas Ivanauskas Museum of Zoology was investigated and the species affiliation of these specimens was clarified. The effect of transportation on the blood indices of Atlantic sturgeon was evaluated depending on the light and dark phases, and the recovery time of the blood indices was determined. Using modern monitoring and tagging methods, migration of Atlantic sturgeon in the Nemunas, Neris and Šventoji rivers was studied. Spatial distribution was determined, and the mortality rate was estimated in the Curonian Lagoon and coastal zone of the Baltic Sea. The obtained results of the research add to the knowledge about the species of sturgeon family (Acipenseridae) fish that used to live in Lithuanian waters. The research results and conclusions presented in the dissertation were important and useful in the preparation of the program and action plan for the restoration of the Atlantic sturgeon population in Lithuania as well as in cooperation with other countries and international organizations in reintroducing sturgeons in the Baltic Sea. |
