As efforts falter to save North America’s largest freshwater fish – a toothless beast leftover from the days of dinosaurs – officials hope to stave off extinction by sending more water hurtling down a river so the fish can spawn in the wild.
By MATTHEW BROWN, Associated Press Writer BILLINGS, Mont. — As efforts falter to save North America’s largest freshwater fish – a toothless beast leftover from the days of dinosaurs – officials hope to stave off extinction by sending more water hurtling down a river so the fish can spawn in the wild. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Thursday issued a report saying attempts over the past two years to save the endangered Kootenai River white sturgeon had failed. The prehistoric fish, characterized by a long snout and armor-like scales, can reach 19 feet long and top 1,000 pounds. They live along a stretch of the Kootenai that passes through Montana, northern Idaho and southern British Columbia. Fewer than 500 of the bottom-feeding behemoths survive – and it’s been 35 years since they successfully spawned. …
N. America’s biggest fish slips toward extinction
