Beluga, osetra and sevruga caviar come from what fish?

Beluga, osetra and sevruga caviar come from sturgeon. These prized types are named for particular sturgeon species or species groups, rather than for different kinds of fish eggs.

Beluga caviar comes from the beluga sturgeon, Huso huso, a very large species native to the Caspian and Black Sea regions. Osetra, also spelled ossetra or oscietra, traditionally refers to eggs from the Russian sturgeon and closely related sturgeon species. Sevruga traditionally comes from the starry, or stellate, sturgeon, Acipenser stellatus.

Caviar technically means salted, cured roe of sturgeon. Eggs from salmon, trout, lumpfish and other fish are often marketed as roe or “caviar,” but they are not traditional sturgeon caviar. The eggs are graded by size, color, firmness and flavor, and the fish are harvested from both wild and farmed populations.

Sturgeon are ancient ray-finned fish whose fossil history extends back more than 200 million years. Because many species became endangered through overfishing and habitat loss, international trade in wild sturgeon and their products is regulated.