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Sturgeon Report Card

 Notice: Fishing for White Sturgeon is open for Catch and Release only starting October 1.

See the latest CDFW Press Release and California Regulatory Notice Register 2024, Volume Number 28–Z, or visit the White Sturgeon page for details on the emergency regulation and CDFW actions.

Fishing for White Sturgeon is catch and release only, no harvest is permitted. Any unused harvest tags from Sturgeon Fishing Report Cards purchased earlier in the year are invalid.

white sturgeon under water

Sturgeon Fishing Report Cards (Cards) are an integral part of Department and legislative efforts to reduce the illegal commercialization of sturgeon. Cards provide critical data on catch and (prior to CESA candidacy) harvest that enable the Department to make informed fisheries management decisions surrounding White Sturgeon and federally threatened Green Sturgeon populations. While Card reporting is legally mandated for all anglers targeting White Sturgeon, it also serves as one of the most important actions anglers can take towards conserving these species.

Fees and information on the Report Card and other California sturgeon fishing regulations may be found on our Regulations page.

Program Overview

CDFW Biologists tagging a white sturgeon and recording data

The California Sturgeon Report Card program was initiated in 2007 to help CDFW gather good quality data about the White Sturgeon recreational fishery. The Report Card gives us information on things like how many anglers are fishing for sturgeon, how many fish are caught per year, and how any are released vs. kept for the table (when harvest was permitted). This is some of the most useful information we can get, and we use it to help monitor the fishery and determine how much fishing pressure the population is experiencing. Filling in the Report Card completely and returning it on time are some of the most important things anglers can do to help CDFW manage these fish and keep them around forever.

Card Purchasing and Reporting

Fishing for White Sturgeon is catch and release only. Unused harvest tags from Sturgeon Fishing Report Cards purchased before the species became a candidate for CESA listing are invalid.

Report Cards may be purchased online or wherever fishing licenses are sold. Just like licenses, they are good for one year, from January 1 to December 31. You must have a Report Card with you if you are fishing for sturgeon. Anglers must return their completed Report Cards, or submit the information online, by January 31 after the Report Card expires. Prior to purchasing your sturgeon report card you must have a valid sport fishing license.

Where to Purchase

Online(opens in new tab) License Agents(opens in new tab) CDFW Offices(opens in new tab)

POSSESSION OF A STURGEON REPORT CARD IS REQUIRED OF ANY ANGLER FISHING FOR WHITE STURGEON IN ALL CALIFORNIA WATERS

How to Report

Reporting Period: January 1 - 31
RETURNING YOUR REPORT CARD IS MANDATORY

Report Your Catch Online (preferred)(opens in new tab)

Or report your catch by mail to the address listed on the report card.

Regulations at a glance

Species Restrictions

  • White Sturgeon are a candidate for listing as threatened under the California Endangered Species Act. Fishing for White Sturgeon is catch and release only, no harvest is permitted.
  • Green Sturgeon are listed as a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act and take is prohibited.

Bag Limits

  • No sturgeon of any kind may be kept.

Size Limits

  • No sturgeon of any kind may be kept. Removing a White Sturgeon larger than 60 inches FL, or any Green Sturgeon, from the water is prohibited

Gear Restrictions

  • Only one single point, single shank, barbless hook may be used when fishing for sturgeon
  • White Sturgeon must voluntarily take the bait or lure inside its mouth
  • No sturgeon may be taken by trolling, snagging, or by the use of firearms
  • Sturgeon may not be gaffed or snared.

Additional information on the Report Card and other freshwater and saltwater California sturgeon fishing regulations may be found at our Fisheries Regulations page.

Areas off-limits to sturgeon fishing

Please consult current fishing regulations for full details about the White Sturgeon catch and release fishery.

Map showing season and area closures for catch and release White Sturgeon fishing

It is illegal to fish for Green Sturgeon in California. Any Green Sturgeon caught must be kept in the water and released immediately.

Sturgeon Reward Tags

white sturgeon with a CDFW disk tag attached below the dorsal fin
(click to enlarge)

Until 2022, the Department attached monetary reward tags to White Sturgeon as part of a long-term mark-recapture monitoring program. New monitoring methods were initiated in 2024 and reward tags are no longer being applied to sturgeon. Fishing for White Sturgeon is catch and release only. If you catch an sturgeon that still has a reward tag attached to it, do not attempt to remove the tag. Take a picture that clearly shows the tag number and contact Sturgeon@wildlife.ca.gov.

Filling out your Sturgeon Report Card

If you caught sturgeon

There are 2 main sections on the Sturgeon Card to write catch information:

  1. Sturgeon retained before July 12, 2024: White Sturgeon only, 42-48" fork length
  2. Sturgeon released: Green or White. If all the lines are filled, record additional entries for sturgeon released on the back of the card.

If you did not fish OR did not catch any sturgeon--we need to know!

  • For those who did not fish for sturgeon, please mark the 'Did Not Fish' check box
  • For those who fished but did not catch any sturgeon, either leave the card blank or (preferably) make a note of 'No Catch' on the card

EXAMPLE:

sturgeon report card with information filled in according to the example provided
On April 7 you went fishing for sturgeon on the Sacramento River near the Rio Vista Bridge and caught two White Sturgeon that you released. One fish measured 51” fork length and possessed the CDFW disk-tag HH3356, and the untagged fish measured 55” fork length. The next day (April 8) you go sturgeon fishing in Suisun Bay and catch one 47” fork length White Sturgeon that you keep. Per regulations, you cease fishing for sturgeon for the rest of that day. The card represents the correct reporting of this example.

Returning Reward Tags

CDFW reward disc tags ready to be attached to white sturgeon - link opens in new window
(click to enlarge)

Some White Sturgeon in California are carrying reward tags as part of our ongoing efforts to monitor the population. Returned tags help us estimate the size of the population and reveal important trends in the fishery. CDFW currently offers rewards of $50, $100, or $150 per disc tag, although older fish with a $20 tag are sometimes caught.

Tags can be returned to the Department physically by mail or a photograph of the tag can be emailed to r3sportfish@wildlife.ca.gov. Both methods of tag return must include a completed sturgeon tag recovery form (PDF Form). Tags will be returned to the angler upon request if they are desired as a souvenir. Anglers will also receive a commendation card with information about the fish, along with the specified reward amount.

Anglers can mail reward disc tags and forms to:

California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Attn: Sportfish Unit
2109 Arch-Airport Road, Suite 100
Stockton, CA 95206

Please make a note on the form (or in an email) if you would like the tag returned to you.

Report a lost or stolen card

If your Sturgeon Report Card has been lost or stolen, you should download and complete the Sturgeon Fishing Report Card Affidavit (PDF Form). Fill out, from your best recollection, the same information that appears on the report card, including the date, location, and length of any sturgeon kept or released.

If you DO wish to fish for sturgeon again during this license year: Bring or mail the completed form to one of the offices listed below along with the Sturgeon Report Card Replacement fee.

If you DO NOT wish to fish for sturgeon again during this license year: Bring or mail the completed form to one of the offices listed below before January 31 of the year after the Report Card expires (e.g. your 2021 card must be received by January 31, 2022).

  • SACRAMENTO - License and Revenue Branch, 1740 N. Market Blvd., Sacramento, CA 95834 (916) 928-5805
  • EUREKA - 619 Second Street, Eureka, CA 95501 (707) 445-6493
  • FAIRFIELD - 2825 Cordelia Road, Suite 100, Fairfield, CA 94534 (707) 428-2002
  • FRESNO - 1234 E. Shaw Avenue, Fresno, CA 93710 (559) 243-4005
  • LOS ALAMITOS - 4665 Lampson Avenue, Suite C, Los Alamitos, CA 90720 (562) 342-7100
  • MONTEREY - 20 Lower Ragsdale Drive, Suite 100, Monterey, CA 93940 (831) 649-2870
  • RANCHO CORDOVA - 1701 Nimbus Road, Rancho Cordova, CA 95670 (916) 358-2900
  • REDDING - 601 Locust Street, Redding, CA 96001 (530) 225-2300
  • SAN DIEGO - 3883 Ruffin Road, San Diego, CA 92123 (858) 467-4201
  • STOCKTON – 2109 Arch Airport Road, Suite 100, Stockton, CA 95206 (209) 234-3420

Report poaching

Poaching, or illegal harvest, remains a serious concern for California sturgeon. Not only do poachers take more sturgeon than legally permitted, they usually specifically target the largest spawning females in order to produce valuable caviar. When fish grow, they produce exponentially more eggs than smaller fish, so a large, older female may contain many times the eggs of a first-time spawner. The survival of large females is critical in order to reproduce the next generations of sturgeon and maintain the population.

Any suspected illegal activity can be reported confidentially to the CalTIP (Californians Turn In Poachers and Polluters) program. Call 1-888-334-CalTIP (888-334-2258) or text anonymously to "CALTIP", followed by a space and the message, to 847411 (tip411).

Anglers may also download the free CALTIP smartphone App for Android or Apple phones.

For more details about CalTIP, visit the CDFW CalTIP page.


Card Data Results

Anglers are required to return Sturgeon Cards in January of the following year (by mail or using the online reporting system; see the "Purchase & Report" tab for more details). After January 31, we compile all Card data from the previous year and produce an annual technical report. The resulting report summarizes data from the previous Card year for comparison with past Card years. This allows us to document trends in sturgeon catch, harvest, and angler participation in the fishery. Visit our Bibliography page for access to the most recent report (PDF)(opens in new tab), as well as past reports.

The following tabs display graphs for various analyses of Card data, along with explanations for each plot.

Annual Sturgeon Card Purchases

Graph of annual sturgeon card purchases.
The figure above shows the trend in annual Sturgeon report card purchases over time. Sturgeon cards were issued free of charge at the onset of the program in 2007, evidenced by the increase in card purchases until a $8 fee was implemented in 2012. Since the incorporation of a fee, it is apparent that anglers have become more selective in the additional tags purchased with a fishing license.

Kept vs. Released Sturgeon

Graph of the annual percent of reported White Sturgeon catch that is kept versus released.
For every sturgeon caught, anglers must record whether or not the fish was kept (and thus harvested) or released. This plot describes the percent of catch reported as ‘kept’ vs ‘released’ as a fraction of the total caught. In other words, this plot answers the questions: “Out of the total number of White Sturgeon caught each year, what portion is kept by anglers? What portion is released?” The lines represent the trend in catch across the two groups over time, and the r2 values are a statistical measure that describes how well the lines fit (or represent) the data. The closer an r2 value is to 1, the better the fit. The p value of < 0.5 indicates that there is a statistically significant decrease in the proportion of catch that is released, suggesting that overtime, anglers are harvesting more White Sturgeon relative to the total amount caught. However, this trend was not observed in 2023, resulting in poor regression fit (r2 = 0.34).

Catch by Size Category

Bar graph of the proportion of total reported catch by size category, including under-sized, legal-sized, and over-sized.
In 2023, the fraction of reported catch that was kept was 21.4% compared to the long-term average of 32.5%. To better understand the factors driving this observation, we first looked at the size composition of reported catch. This plot shows that there was a relatively high proportion of sub-legal (“under-sized”) catch (light green bar; < 40 inches Jan 1- November 15th, < 42 inches November 16- December 31) and over-sized catch (dark green bar, > 60 inches Jan - November 15th, > 48 inches November 16 – December 31) observed in 2023, which likely explains the decrease in the proportion of harvested catch. Additionally, emergency regulations (in effect starting November 16, 2023) enforced a narrower slot limit, decreased the annual bag limit, and established a vessel take limit during months with historically high catch (November-December, see Section “Catch by Location and Month”), which may have also contributed to decreases in reported harvest.

White Sturgeon Catch

Graph of the average percent of all anglers that report catching White Sturgeon (kept or released).
Not all anglers that target White Sturgeon are successful in catching them. This plots shows the average percent of reporting anglers that catch 0- 15+ sturgeon. Calculations were made using data only from anglers that expended fishing effort (i.e., does not include anglers that did not fish). On average, most anglers (74%) that fish for sturgeon do not catch any. 1-2 fish are caught by an average of 19% of reporting anglers, and even fewer (less than 7%) catch 3 or more sturgeon.

Catch by Harvest Level

Graph of the annual proportion of all reporting anglers that keep 0, 1, 2, or 3 White Sturgeon. ‘No Effort’ denotes anglers reporting ‘did not fish.’
Anglers participate in the sturgeon fishery at various harvest levels. The plot above describes the fraction (ie. proportion) of reporting anglers that keep 0-3 fish (3 being the annual limit) or do not fish at all. The color associated with ‘Kept 0’ takes up most of space within each bar on the plot. This means that each year, the majority of reporting anglers keep 0 fish (on average, 53.3%). The next dominant color block belongs to the ‘No Effort’ category. On average, 35.1% of reporting anglers do not end up fishing for sturgeon. Those that report keeping one fish make up, on average, 8.7% of all reporting anglers. Some keep two fish (less than 3.2%), and less than 1% of the total reporting anglers keep the annual bag limit of three fish (prior to emergency regulations of one fish annual limit).
*NOTE: Prior to the the implementation of emergency regulations in November 2023, anglers were permitted to keep up to three fish per year. From November 2023 through July 12, 2024, Card Holders were limited to harvesting one fish per year under emergency regulations. On July 12, 2024, White Sturgeon became a candidate species for listing under the California Endangered Species Act and were granted full protections during the review process. Fishing for White Sturgeon is currently closed throughout the state.

Catch by Month

Graph of the mean annual percent of White Sturgeon catch by month, vertical bars represent standard deviation.
The figure above describes trends in reported catch as a fraction of the total caught (represented as a percent) for each month, averaged across all years. The vertical bars represent the standard deviation of the average value (the points on the plot), which describes the variability in the individual data values compared to the average. A longer bar means a wider range of reported catch values for that month over time, while a shorter bar indicates a smaller range of catch values for that month over time. We see that highest catch of White Sturgeon typically occurs in the late fall through the early spring, while lowest catch occurs in the late spring through the summer. An important caveat to note is that this analysis does not take fishing effort into account. This means that higher catch in the late fall/ early spring could be simply due to anglers fishing more often during those months, and less during late spring/ summer. However, these trends coincide with the timing of sturgeon spawning migrations into the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and lower rivers, which could be linked to higher observed reported catch by anglers in the winter and spring.

Sturgeon Identification Tips

Green Sturgeon

  • Olive green with dark stripe on sides and belly
  • Barbels closer to mouth
  • 33 or fewer sharp lateral (side) scutes
  • Scutes behind vent
  • Vent between pelvic fins

White Sturgeon

  • Gray with pale belly
  • Barbels closer to tip of snout
  • 37 or more dull lateral (side) scutes
  • No scutes behind vent
  • Vent behind pelvic fins
white and green sturgeon
Photos courtesy NOAA Fisheries.

Sturgeon Report Card Map

Map of Sturgeon Report Card location codes - link opens in new window
Go to interactive map for further details on fishing regions and catch analytics. Scroll down for numerical code definitions.
Card Code Card Description
1 Sacramento River: Red Bluff to Colusa (2007-2009)
01A Sacramento River: Upstream of Red Bluff (closed area, not labeled on map)
01B Sacramento River: Red Bluff to Hwy 32 bridge (closed area, not labeled on map)
01C Sacramento River: Hwy 32 bridge to Colusa
2 Sacramento River: Colusa to Knights Landing
3 Sacramento River: Knights Landing to Rio Vista
4 Sacramento River: Rio Vista to Chipps Island
5 Feather River
6 American River
7 Sacramento Deepwater Ship Channel
8 Yolo Bypass
9 Montezuma Slough
10 Napa River
11 Petaluma River
12 San Joaquin River: Upstream of HWY 140 bridge
13 San Joaquin River: HWY 140 bridge to Stockton
14 San Joaquin River: Stockton to Sherman Lake
15 Old River
16 San Pablo Bay
17 Carquinez Strait
18 Suisun Bay
19 Grizzly Bay
20 San Francisco Bay: North of HWY 80
21 San Francisco Bay: South of HWY 80
22 Pacific Ocean: North of Golden Gate Bridge
23 Pacific Ocean: Golden Gate Bridge to Point Sur
24 Pacific Ocean: Point Sur to San Diego
25 Any reservoir or lake (not labeled on map)
26 Klamath River (closed area, not labeled on map)

Contact

For more information about the Sturgeon Report Card, email Sturgeon@wildlife.ca.gov.

Fisheries Branch
Branch Chief: Jay Rowan
1010 Riverside Parkway, West Sacramento, CA 95605
Fisheries@wildlife.ca.gov