This initiative is coordinated by the Centre d’Estudis dels Rius Mediterranis of the Universitat de Vic - Universitat Central de Catalunya (CERM-UVic-UCC). It involves collaboration from the Department of Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition, the Institut per al Desenvolupament de les Comarques de l’Ebre (IDECE), the IRTA Aquaculture Centre in La Ràpita, the Ichthyological Centre of the Delta de l’Ebre Natural Park, and the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge. The French Government also participates through the Direction Régionale de l'Environnement, de l'Aménagement et du Logement of the New Aquitaine region, in collaboration with INRAE and the association MIGADO.
This marks the fourth sturgeon release in the Ebre. The released specimens originate from the experimental centre in Saint Seurin-sur-l’Isle, New Aquitaine, France. Researchers from CERM-UVic-UCC will monitor their adaptation and behaviour.
The European sturgeon became extinct in the Ebre River in the mid-20th century due to overfishing, pollution, and the construction of riverine infrastructure. This species, one of the oldest on the planet, is currently critically endangered worldwide, surviving with difficulty only in the Garonne and Dordogne river basins, and the nearby Atlantic Ocean.
Previous releases include 44 specimens on December 21, 2023, as part of the LIFE MIGRATOEBRE project; 50 fish on December 11, 2024, as a follow-up action to the Life project; and 43 fish on December 17, 2025. In these instances, most sturgeons headed towards the sea, while some remained in the Ebre estuary for months, a behaviour expected during the species' early years.
