- April 1, 2026 - Biodôme : Behind the scenes at the Biodôme
Did you know that the waters of the St. Lawrence are home to some of the longest-living species? Among those are the Greenland shark and the ocean quahog, some specimens of which can live for over 400 years. At the Biodôme, two species stand out for their longevity: the redfish and the Atlantic sturgeon, both of which can live for 60 years or more. Four Atlantic sturgeons delivered to the Biodôme in 2011 are now more than a half-century old. Dip into the story of their arrival at the Biodôme and discover the attentive care they’ve received ever since.
Where do the Atlantic sturgeons at the Biodôme come from?
In the autumn of 2011 the Biodôme was offered some exceptional fish by the Huntsman Marine Science Centre in New Brunswick. These were four large Atlantic sturgeon measuring between 1.8 and 2.4 meters in length and weighing as much as 80 kg. At the time, their age was estimated to be between 30 and 40 years old. They’d been caught in 1999 in the Bay of Fundy’s St. John River, to be used in artificial breeding programs and in research. Afterwards they were put on display for Centre visitors, but over the years grew to be too big for their tanks.
Transport designed for large fish
Transporting fish that size over a distance of some 900 km requires the right equipment and careful planning. The Biodôme’s aquarists had already worked closely with a fish farmer whose gear included a large insulated trailer-mounted transport tank. An oxygenation and water control system ensured stable transportation conditions throughout the trip. And a supply of water accompanied the fish in case of unexpected developments.
As a precautionary measure, only two fish were transported at a time, meaning two journeys were required smack in the middle of February. But making the trip during the winter in very cold water helped keep the large fish calm during the 11 to 12 hours on the road.
When they arrived at the Biodôme, the sturgeon were placed in quarantine in a 250,000-liter isolation tank. They were then introduced to the large exhibition basin in the Gulf of St. Lawrence ecosystem, and quickly became a major attraction for visitors.
Some personality traits of the Atlantic sturgeon
The Atlantic sturgeon is the largest freshwater fish found in Québec. It can grow to be four meters long and weigh up to 200 kg. It has a cartilaginous skeleton, and its skin is not covered with scales but with bony plates. The fish feeds on organisms found on the seabed, which it detects with the barbels (whiskers) at the front of it mouth. It has no teeth, and sucks its prey in with its ventral mouth, which extends downward like a tube.
Like the Atlantic salmon, this is an anadromous (migrating) fish: the Atlantic sturgeon lives in the sea from the age of four, and returns to rivers in order to spawn. The St. Lawrence and its tributaries are home to the northernmost population of Atlantic sturgeon.
The future of the species
The Atlantic sturgeon is a fragile species in the face of overfishing and disturbances to its spawning habitat caused by human activities. Its late sexual maturity and the fact that it reproduces only every two to four years make it a species that could be designated as threatened or vulnerable in Québec and threatened in Canada. In fact, it almost disappeared from the St. Lawrence River in the 1970s. So it’s a privilege to be able to present fish such as these to Biodôme visitors.
This text was revised by Gheylen Daghfous, curator and scientific advisor at the Biodôme.
