Sturgeon in the context of "State of Louisiana"

Louisiana (French: Louisiane [lwizjan]; Spanish: Luisiana [lwiˈsjana]; Louisiana Creole: Lwizyàn) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25th in population, with roughly 4.6 million residents. Reflecting its French heritage, Louisiana is the only U.S. state with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are equivalent to counties, making it one of only two U.S. states not subdivided into counties (the other being Alaska and its boroughs). Baton Rouge is the state's capital, and New Orleans, a French Louisiana region, is its most populous city with a population of about 363,000 people. Louisiana has a coastline with the Gulf of Mexico to the south; a large part of its eastern boundary is demarcated by the Mississippi River and the mouth of the Mississippi or delta defines much of its lower topography.

Much of Louisiana's lands were formed from sediment washed down the Mississippi River, leaving enormous deltas and vast areas of coastal marsh and swamp. These contain a rich southern biota, including birds such as ibises and egrets, many species of tree frogs—such as the state-recognized American green tree frog—and fish such as sturgeon and paddlefish. More elevated areas, particularly in the north, contain a wide variety of ecosystems such as tallgrass prairie, longleaf pine forest and wet savannas; these support an exceptionally large number of plant species, including many species of terrestrial orchids and carnivorous plants. Over half the state is forested.

The Amur River (Russian: река Амур) or Heilong River (simplified Chinese: 黑龙江; traditional Chinese: 黑龍江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur proper is 2,824 km (1,755 mi) long, and has a drainage basin of 1,855,000 km (716,000 sq mi). If including its main stem tributary, the Argun, the Amur is 4,444 km (2,761 mi) long, making it the world's tenth longest river.

The Amur is an important river for the aquatic fauna of Northeast Asia. The river basin is home to a variety of large predatory fish such as northern snakehead, Amur pike, taimen, Amur catfish, predatory carp and yellowcheek, as well as several species of trout and anadromous salmonids. The largest fish species in the Amur is the kaluga, a sturgeon that is one of the largest freshwater fish in the world, attaining a length as great as 5.6 m (18 ft). The Amur is also home to the northernmost populations of the Amur softshell turtle and Indian lotus.

Roe, (/roʊ/ ROH) or hard roe, is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses, of fish and certain marine animals such as shrimp, scallop, sea urchins and squid. As a seafood, roe is used both as a cooked ingredient in many dishes, and as a raw ingredient for delicacies such as caviar.

The roe of marine animals, such as the roe of lumpsucker, hake, mullet, salmon, Atlantic bonito, mackerel, squid, and cuttlefish are especially rich sources of omega-3 fatty acids, but omega-3s are present in all fish roe. Also, a significant amount of vitamin B₁₂ is among the nutrients present in fish roes.

Caviar or caviare is a food consisting of salt-cured roe of the family Acipenseridae. Caviar is considered a delicacy and is eaten as a garnish or spread. Traditionally, the term caviar refers only to roe from wild sturgeon in the Caspian Sea and Black Sea (beluga, ossetra and sevruga caviars). The term caviar can also describe the roe of other species of sturgeon or other fish such as paddlefish, salmon, steelhead, trout, lumpfish, whitefish, or carp.

The roe can be fresh (non-pasteurized) or pasteurized, which reduces its culinary and economic value.

In fish anatomy and turtle anatomy, a barbel is a slender, whisker-like sensory organ near the mouth (sometimes called whiskers or tendrils). Fish that have barbels include the catfish, the carp, the goatfish, the hagfish, the sturgeon, the zebrafish, the black dragonfish and some species of shark such as the sawshark. Barbels house the taste buds of such fish and are used to search for food in murky water.

The word barbel comes from Latin barbula 'little beard'. Barbels are sometimes erroneously referred to as barbs, which are found in bird feathers for flight.

A fish scale is a small rigid plate that grows out of the skin of a fish. The skin of most jawed fishes is covered with these protective scales, which can also provide effective camouflage through the use of reflection and colouration, as well as possible hydrodynamic advantages. The term scale derives from the Old French escale, meaning a shell pod or husk.

Scales vary enormously in size, shape, structure, and extent, ranging from strong and rigid armour plates in fishes such as shrimpfishes and boxfishes, to microscopic or absent in fishes such as eels and anglerfishes. The morphology of a scale can be used to identify the species of fish it came from. Scales originated within the jawless ostracoderms, ancestors to all jawed fishes today.Most bony fishes are covered with the cycloid scales of salmon and carp, or the ctenoid scales of perch, or the ganoid scales of sturgeons and gars. Cartilaginous fishes (sharks and rays) are covered with placoid scales. Some species are covered instead by scutes, and others have no outer covering on part or all of the skin.