Bester (according to the first syllables of the words beluga and sterlet ) is a hybrid of two species of fish of the sturgeon family, obtained by artificially crossing the beluga with sterlet . It was first obtained in 1952 in the USSR by professors Nikolyukin N.I. and Timofeeva N.A. in the Teplovsky hatchery of the Saratov region . Bester combines the rapid growth of the beluga and the early maturation of the sterlet. Length up to 1.8 m, weight up to 30 kg. Prolific. In aquaculture, first-generation hybrids in 2 years of cultivation in cages and pools reach a mass of 1 kg and even more. Related forms: beluga bester and sterlet bester [1] .
| Bester | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Hybrid origin | |
| Huso huso × Acipenser ruthenus | |
Content
- 1 Description
- 2 Distribution
- 3 Biology
- 4 Human interaction
- 5 Parent species
- 6 notes
- 7 Literature
Description
There are 5 rows of bone bugs: 1 dorsal , 2 lateral and 2 ventral. Lateral bugs 51-52. The snout in the section is rounded. There are two pairs of slightly flattened antennae, like a beluga, sometimes with a slight undulation or notch at the end, leaf appendages and fringe are absent. Sprays are well developed. The gill membranes fused with the inter-gill gap, forming an inconspicuous fold at the site of the increment. The shape of the mouth is intermediate between beluga (lunate) and sterlet (transverse).
In the dorsal fin 51-54 rays; in the anal 28-30; branchial stamens on the 1st arch 17–20.
Color ranges from sterlet to beluga - from light gray to black, from light brown to gray-brown and brown. Usually there is a sharp contrast between the dark dorsal and light abdominal parts of the body [1] .
Distribution
It is an object of commercial cultivation in Russia , Germany , Poland , Italy , USA , Japan , China , South Korea , etc. Bester is forbidden to be released into water bodies inhabited by natural sturgeon populations, because of the risk of genetic pollution of pure sturgeon species, especially Beluga [1] .
Biology
Bester is tolerant to water salinity (from 0 to 18 ‰). At high saturation of water with oxygen, it withstands temperatures up to 34 ° C. The optimum temperature for growing is 20–25 ° C.
Breeding is only artificial. Sexual products ( caviar and milk ) are usually obtained in the winter-spring period, from February to June (depending on water temperature) by intravital methods.
The fertility of female bester is from 100 to 300 thousand eggs, beluga bester - from 200 to 500 thousand eggs and sterlet bester - from 20 to 100 thousand eggs. Males reach puberty at the age of 4-5 years, females - at 5-9 years old at the bester and sterlet bester. Beluga bester ripens a little later: males at 8-9 years old, females at 9-14 years old.
The maximum length is 170 cm, weight up to 30 kg, beluga bester grows up to 63 kg with a length of 230 cm and sterlet bester - up to 10 kg with a length of 110 cm.
In the first 3-5 days, larvae begin to actively feed on zooplankton , small chironomids, and artificial granulated feeds. The diet of adults consists of small fish and granular feed.
Human Interaction
It is an important subject of aquaculture . In traditional Russian cuisine is considered a delicacy , like all sturgeon fish. Tasty meat is eaten boiled and steamed, made of balyks . Bester caviar in size and taste is not inferior to sturgeon and stellate sturgeon caviar [1] .
Parent species
Beluga
Sterlet
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Commercial fish of Russia. In two volumes / Ed. O.F. Gritsenko, A.N. Kotlyar and B.N. Kotenev. - M .: VNIRO publishing house, 2006. - T. 1. - S. 78-79. - 624 p. - ISBN 5-85382-229-2 .
Literature
- Biological Encyclopedic Dictionary / Ch. ed. M.S. Gilyarov ; Editorial: A.A. Baev , G.G. Vinberg, G.A. Zavarzin et al. - M .: Sov. Encyclopedia , 1986.- S. 59. - 831 p. - 100,000 copies.