Archive · 11 Aug 2026
Great Lakes sturgeon could live 400 years, study finds
There are very big fish in the Great Lakes called lake sturgeon.
People sometimes call them 'living dinosaurs' because they have been around for an extremely long time.
A new study says some of these fish, especially the females, might live to be more than 400 years old.
That is much older than scientists used to think.
Before this study, scientists believed lake sturgeon only lived to about 150 years.
The scientists did not catch a fish that was 400 years old.
Instead, they studied 44 years of records about five groups of sturgeon to make their estimate.
Fish keep growing for their entire lives, so a bigger fish is usually an older fish.
Only Greenland sharks are known to live longer, with some reaching about 512 years.
A new study by researchers and wildlife officials in Michigan and Wisconsin estimates some female lake sturgeon may live up to 427 years.
The estimate is based on 44 years of data from five lake sturgeon populations across the Great Lakes, not on a captured 427-year-old fish.
Previous scientific estimates placed the maximum age of lake sturgeon at around 150 years.
Lake sturgeon, among the largest freshwater fish in North America, can weigh 200 to 300 pounds, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
The species has existed about 150 million years, while Greenland sharks hold the record for longest-lived vertebrates at up to 512 years.
- Who
- Researchers and wildlife officials in Michigan and Wisconsin.
- What
- They estimated that some female lake sturgeon in the Great Lakes may live up to 427 years, far exceeding the previous estimate of about 150 years.
- When
- The article does not give a publication date; the estimate was reached by analyzing 44 years of collected data.
- Where
- The Great Lakes region of North America, including Michigan and Wisconsin.
- Why
- To better understand lake sturgeon growth and lifespan, revealing the species as among the longest-lived vertebrates known to science.
- Species
- Lake sturgeon
- Maximum estimated age
- 427 years (some females)
- Previous estimate
- About 150 years maximum
- Data analyzed
- 44 years of data from five lake sturgeon populations
- Typical weight
- 200-300 pounds (US Fish and Wildlife Service)
- Species age
- About 150 million years
- Longest-lived vertebrate
- Greenland shark, up to 512 years
- Study authors
- Researchers and wildlife officials in Michigan and Wisconsin