Maximum length (rarely) 6 metres, usual adult length 2 to 2½ metres. This species is occasionally taken in the Adriatic, where it is known as storione ladato (It.) and moruna (S.C.). The Greeks also have a name for it: akipíssios. However, it is most abundant in the Caspian Sea, where it ranks third, by quantity, as a source of caviar. (Rather more is obtained from the Caspian sub-species of Acipenser gueldenstaedti, and considerably more from the sevruga sturgeon.)
