Fishing seasons

Sturgeon fishing is practiced almost all year round, except during the hottest summer months in Iran, and in the depths of winter on the northern shores of the Caspian Sea, during the freeze-up period.

It’s important to note that sturgeon maturation periods (or spawning periods) only occur every 2-3 years. However, in any season, mature sturgeon include fish full of immature eggs. We could avoid destroying these fish by first examining them with a probe, but given the speed required to process the fish after capture, this process would be too thorough and slow. So we rather take the risk of destroying eggs that haven’t yet reached maturity.

Peak harvesting seasons are spring and autumn. The first runs from late February or early March to mid-May. It produces 90% of the annual Sevruga and 50% of the Asetra and Beluga.

Spring fishing is suprerior in terms of quantity and quality to fall fishing, which begins in mid-September and ends in December. Spring’s high production is due to the nature of the sturgeon and the climatic conditions (coming out of winter); it is confirmed as the best season in terms of quality proportions: 80% first quality versus 20% in fall.