Sturgeon Fishes

1 Oocyte Maturation and Ovulation.- 1.1 Maturation of Sturgeon Oocytes in Nature and at the Hatcheries.- 1.2 Changes in the Oocytes During Their Maturation.- 1.3 Ovulation of the Oocytes and the Formation of Coelomic Fluid.- 1.4 Hormonal Stimulation of Oocyte Maturation and Ovulation.- 1.5 Methods of Working with Sturgeon Spawners Migrating in Rivers at Different Seasons and Spawning During the Same or Following Year.- 1.6 Introduction in Culture of Various Acipenserid Species.- 1.7 Influence of Environmental Conditions on the Capacity of Females to Respond to Pituitary Injection and the Hatchery Quality of Eggs.- 1.8 Release of Eggs During Natural Spawning, Time of Oocyte Maturation and Ovulation and Time of Obtaining Eggs at Hatcheries.- 2 Embryonic Development.- 2.1 Gametes.- 2.2 Artificial Insemination of Eggs.- 2.3 Fertilization.- 2.4 Cleavage and Blastulation.- 2.5 Gastrulation.- 2.6 Development of the Embryo from the End of Gastrulation to the Onset of Heart Beating.- 2.7 Development of the Embryo from the Onset of Heart Beating to the Time of Hatching.- 2.8 Duration and Rate of Embryogenesis in Various Acipenserid Species and Their Dependence on Temperature. Chronology of Development.- 3 Development of Prelarvae.- 3.1 Characteristics of the Prelarval Period of Development.- 3.2 Stages of Prelarval Development.- 3.3 Timing of Prelarval Development.- 3.4 Prelarval Development During the Period Between Hatching and up to the Beginning of Rhythmic Respiratory Movements.- 3.5 Development of Prelarvae from the Beginning of Rhythmic Respiratory Movements and up to Transition to Active Feeding.- 3.6 Differences Between Prelarvae of Different Sturgeon Species A. gueldenstaedti H. huso, A. stellatus, A. ruthenus, P. kaufmanni.- 3.7 Defects of Prelarval Development.- 4 Environmental Conditions of Spawning and Development.- 4.1 General.- 4.2 Temperature Range.- 4.3 Oxygen Content of Water and Gas Metabolism in Embryos.- 4.4 Light Conditions.- 4.5 Quality of Water.- 4.6 The Range of the Ecological Optimum.- 5 Control of Incubation Conditions.- 5.1 General.- 5.2 Duration of Development as a Criterion for the Evaluation of Incubation Conditions.- 5.3 Normal Embryonic and Prelarval Development.- 5.4 Losses During Incubation, Their Magnitude and Sources.- Appendix A Quick Method for the Determination of Gonad Maturity in the Sturgeon (Kazanskii et al. 1978).- Appendix B Duration of Oocyte Maturation Time in Vitro as a Criterion for Selecting Sturgeon Spawners for Breeding (B.E Goncharov).- Appendix C Comparative Quantitative Determination of the Gonadotropic Activity in Sturgeon Pituitaries (Goncharov 1972).- Appendix D Relative Characteristic of Developmental Duration.- Appendix E Determination of Time for Injection of Pituitary Suspension and Inspection of Females After Pituitary Injection for Obtaining Eggs at the Optimal Time at Different Temperatures.- E.2 Determination of Time for Inspection of Females and Collecting Eggs.- E.3 Example for Calculation of the Maturation Time and Time of Female Inspection.- Appendix F Artificial Insemination of Sturgeon Eggs (Ginsburg 1963).- Appendix G Sampling for Determination of Fertilization Percentage, Extent of Losses, and Percentage of Abnormal Embryos.- Plates I-XX.- Abbreviations for Figures and Plates.- References.