Iowa DNR on the Look Out for Caviar Thieves
By Katie Wiedemann, Reporter
BELLEVUE - Iowa's waterways could be the next hot spot for criminals trying to make a profit from fish eggs.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is watching for caviar thieves.
The Iowa DNR says it is watching for sport anglers who are illegally catching sturgeon fish and cutting out their eggs to make caviar.
It may sound a little strange, but some caviar connoisseurs say the eggs of these shovelnose sturgeon fish are quite tasty.
The DNR suspects a group from Chicago is responsible for stealing the fish eggs and then selling them for $40 to $80 per pound.
Authorities have found piles of fish with their eggs cut out on the river near Saint Louis. They say it hasn't happened on this part of the river yet. But the DNR says the upper Mississippi is an obvious next target.
It's an extra effort to keep these fish in the Mississippi River.
The most common fish that produces caviar is the beluga sturgeon. Those fish are in the Caspian Sea between Russia and Iran, and they're an endangered species.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has banned importation of the beluga sturgeon.
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Source:
Kcrg.com
June 2007
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