In 2025, 1.05 million Chinese sturgeon were released, with approximately 12.2% of released juveniles entering life in the sea.

The State Council Information Office held a press conference. A relevant person in charge of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs introduced that the Chinese sturgeon is recognized as a living fossil in the Yangtze River aquatic organisms. In recent years, China has carried out a series of rescue efforts to further promote the natural recovery of the population. Jiang Kaiyong, Director of the Yangtze River Office of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, introduced that in order to supplement the natural population, large-scale release of larger-sized fry will begin in 2024, with over 1 million released that year and reaching 1.05 million in 2025. At the same time, a comprehensive approach using technologies such as ultrasonic telemetry, net monitoring, and environmental DNA analysis will be used to monitor the release effects. Results show that about 12.2% of released fry have entered the sea through the Yangtze River estuary, with significant increases in their body length and weight. This indicates that large-scale release of larger-sized fry can effectively supplement the natural population of Chinese sturgeon. In the next step, following the conservation concept of "protecting- breeding- releasing- building populations," we will continue to implement large-scale propagation and release in coordination with relevant localities and research institutions to promote the natural recovery of the population.