A miniature "Yangtze River" is under construction at the Beijing Aquarium.

A shoal of rare and endangered Chinese wild sturgeon will take up residency next month in what was once the shark pool.

Their capital pied-a-terre will imitate the mighty Yangtze, the home of this fascinating fish for centuries.

"The sturgeons' new home is expected to hold 1,400 tons of fresh water and include a special adjustment device which can make fresh water into sea water," said Zheng Dong, chief technician of the aquarium's aquatic animal division.

The project is aimed at helping research into artificial reproduction of the rare fish, which grows matures in sea water but reproduces in fresh water.

"We will be able to examine whether the fish can mature in fresh water," said Zhang Xianliang, director with the Yangtze River Fishery Institute under the Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences.

Another study to be jointly conducted at the aquarium is the eating habits of the wild sturgeon.

"We expect breakthroughs in breeding this endangered old species through the new project," Zhang said.

However, Zhang Li, director with the China office of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, said the most urgent task to better protect the fish is to keep a closer eye on the survival rate of those artificially-bred Chinese sturgeons which have been released into the river.

The Chinese sturgeon, dubbed "panda in water," is the oldest kind species in the Yangtze and estimated to be 140 million years old.

Statistics show the survival rate of artificially-bred Chinese sturgeons is only 1 per cent.

A week ago, the largest wild Chinese sturgeon ever captured in the river died in Central China's Hubei Province from a combination of senility, exhaustion after reproduction and an unbearably low temperature.

(China Daily March 17, 2005)