Safeguarding the Last Giants of the Danube: New Transnational Project to Protect Sturgeons and Restore River Connectivity

The MonStur in the Danube project tackles one of the most urgent ecological challenges in the Danube Region — the dramatic decline of migratory fish species, particularly sturgeons, due to disrupted river connectivity. Financed by the Interreg Danube Region Programme, the project aims to develop a joint transboundary sturgeon monitoring system, bringing together Danube River Basin (DRB) countries to protect remaining populations, conserve their habitats, and support policy and data integration for effective conservation.

This initiative falls under the programme priority "A greener, low-carbon Danube Region", with the specific objective: “To protect and preserve biodiversity in ecological corridors and eco-regions of transnational importance within the Danube Region.”

The project's associated partner in Ukraine is The State Agency of Melioration and Fisheries of Ukraine.
 

Why Sturgeons?

STURGEONS, the most endangered group of species worldwide, are facing a perilous situation in Europe. Two out of the six native species of the Danube River Basin (DRB) have already vanished, and the remaining populations are on the brink of extinction. These migratory species, which once freely swam from the Black Sea up to Germany, now find their ecological corridors severed by multiple barriers. 

Human interventions — such as hydropower, sediment extraction, navigation, river channelisation, by-catch and illegal fishing — are exerting severe pressure on habitats and populations, calling for immediate, coordinated actions.

The Need for a Basin-Wide Approach

The EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) recognizes migratory sturgeons in the DRB — the world’s most international river basin - as flagship species and as key indicators of habitat connectivity and ecological corridors, and it prominently prioritises their protection.

However, the current monitoring and data management practices are far from ideal. Data is scarce, scattered among countries, project partnerships or single research institutions, leading to inaccessibility and incompatibility. This hampers the assessment of the status of populations and their critical life-cycle habitats. For transboundary migratory species, such information must be assessed on the level of basin-wide populations for proper conservation measures.

A macro-regional monitoring framework would allow extensive impact assessment and justification of conservation measures. This becomes more and more important as the number of sturgeon conservation projects is increasing, potentially including major investments, such as long-term breeding and release programs, or fish passages at the most critical migration barriers - Iron Gate and Gabcikovo dam systems.

Project Goals and Impact

The MonStur in the Danube project sets out to:

1. Build a joint, transnational sturgeon monitoring system, facilitate expert and data user buy-in.
2. Foster shared governance and ensure increased stakeholder cooperation and awareness.
3. Applicable monitoring methods closing knowledge gaps and helping new, targeted conservation measures.

A Pan-Danube Partnership

The project brings together partner countries from across the Danube Region, including: Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Germany, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine.

Together, they aim to protect one of Europe's last remaining wild sturgeon populations — a shared natural heritage of extraordinary ecological and cultural value.

More details about the project:

• The full title of the project: Establishing, testing and launching a transboundary system for Monitoring Sturgeons, to manage and safeguard migratory fish in the Danube River Basin.
• Starting date: 01.04.2025
• Ending date: 31.03.2028
• Total EU contribution: 1.657.573,20 EUR
• Total budget: 2.071.966,50 EUR

Find more information about the project’s activities on our pages:

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This webpage is supported as part of MonStur in the Danube, an Interreg Danube Region Programme project co-funded by the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of WWF-Ukraine and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.