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beluga

  (bə-lū') pronunciation
n.
  1. See white whale.
  2. A large white sturgeon (Huso huso) of the Black and Caspian seas, whose roe is processed into caviar. Also called beluga sturgeon, whitefish.

[Russian belukha, white whale, and beluga, sturgeon : belyĭ, white + -uga, -ukha, augmentative suff.]


 
 

Large species of sturgeon (Huso huso, or Acipenser huso) that inhabits the Caspian and Black seas and the Sea of Azov. It reaches a length of 25 ft (7.5 m) and a weight of 2,900 lbs (1,300 kg), but its flesh and caviar are less valuable than those of smaller species.

For more information on beluga, visit Britannica.com.

 

The arctic dolphin. See delphinapterus leucas.


 
WordNet: beluga
Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has 2 meanings:

Meaning #1: valuable source of caviar and isinglass; found in Black and Caspian seas
  Synonyms: hausen, white sturgeon, Acipenser huso

Meaning #2: small northern whale that is white when adult
  Synonyms: white whale, Delphinapterus leucas


 
Wikipedia: beluga sturgeon
Beluga
Beluga_sturgeon.png
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Acipenseriformes
Family: Acipenseridae
Genus: Huso
Species: H. huso
Binomial name
Huso huso
(Linnaeus, 1758)

The beluga sturgeon or European sturgeon (Huso huso) is a species of anadromous fish in the sturgeon family (Acipenseridae) of order Acipenseriformes. It is found primarily in the Caspian and Black Sea basins, and occasionally in the Adriatic Sea. Heavily fished for the female's valuable roe—known as beluga caviar—the beluga is a huge (very old fish of 6 meters/19 feet are known), slow-growing and late-maturing fish that can live for 150 years.[citation needed] The species' numbers have been greatly reduced by overfishing or poaching, prompting many governments to enact restrictions on its trade.

IUCN classifies the beluga as Endangered. It is a protected species listed in appendix III of the Bern Convention and its trade is restricted under CITES appendix II. The Mediterranean population is strongly protected under appendix II of the Bern Convention, prohibiting any intentional killing of these fish.

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has banned imports of beluga caviar and other beluga products from the Caspian Sea since October 7, 2005.

The Beluga is a large predator which feeds on other fish. Beluga sturgeons are fish, entirely unrelated to mammalian beluga whales. The word derives from the Russian word for white.

Unconfirmed reports suggest that Belugas may reach a length of up to 8.6m and weigh as much as 2,700 kilograms, making them the largest freshwater fish in the world, larger even than the Mekong giant catfish or the pirarucu. At this mass, the Beluga would be even heavier than the Ocean Sunfish, generally recognized as the largest of bony fishes. But the largest actually confirmed specimens were only about 5,5m and already quite extraordinairy. Nevertheless, some scientists still consider the Mekong giant catfish to be the largest freshwater fish, owing to sturgeons' ability to survive in seawater.

The beluga travels up rivers to breed, as do all sturgeons. In this manner sturgeons are sometimes likened to sea fish, though most scientists still consider them river fish.

Beluga caviar is considered a delicacy worldwide. The meat of the beluga, on the other hand, is not particularly renowned.

Beluga caviar has long been scarce and expensive, but the endangered status of the fish has made its caviar more expensive than before. (See beluga caviar.)

References


 
 

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Veterinary Dictionary. The Veterinary Dictionary. Copyright © 2007 by Elsevier. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Beluga sturgeon" Read more

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