Stranded sturgeon die near Stanwood

Published 8:22 am Friday, March 20, 2009

STANWOOD — About 1,500 white sturgeon — some of the fish up to 10 feet long — were stranded at low tide March 12 in shallow channels at Port Susan Bay near Stanwood.

The state Fish and Wildlife Department told The Seattle Times about a dozen of the fish died before an incoming tide allowed the rest to escape back to deeper water in Puget Sound.

A department biologist, Brett Barkdull, said the sturgeon apparently were poking around the mudflats for food.

Most of the white sturgeon in Puget Sound were born in the Fraser or Columbia rivers. The bottom-dwellers feed on small fish, shellfish and worms and can live more than 100 years.