Saltwater · Southern
Sturgeon - White
Ocean regulations can change in-season. Confirm with the 2026 Ocean Sport Fishing Guide and CDFW before you fish.
Species group
STURGEON
Season
Open year around
Season notes
grey green brown
Depth limit
No depth limit
Daily bag limit
One fish per day. Three fish per year statewide. Report card required: Any person fishing for or taking sturgeon shall have in their possession a non-transferable Sturgeon Fishing Report Card issued by the department and shall adhere to all reporting and tagging requirements for sturgeon
Minimum size
No fish less than 40 inches fork length or greater than 60 inches fork length may be taken or possessed
Gear restrictions
Only one single point, single shank, barbless hook may be used on a line when taking sturgeon. The sturgeon must voluntarily take the bait or lure in its mouth. No sturgeon may be taken by trolling, snagging or by the use of firearms. Sturgeon may not be gaffed, nor shall any person use any type of firearm or snare to take any sturgeon. For the purposes of this section, a snare is a flexible loop made from any material that can be tightened like a noose around any part of the fish.
Identification
The white sturgeon has a slender, torpedo-shaped body that is smooth-skinned, scaleless and armored with 5 lateral rows of bony plates called skutes. Its 11–14 dorsal scutes are all anterior to the dorsal fin, and 38 48 lateral scutes and 9 12 ventral scutes are on each side. The dorsal color of a white sturgeon is gray, pale olive, or gray-brown whereas their underside is white. The fins are customarily a dusky, opaque gray. They have distinctive characteristics that date back to their early ancestors, such as a heterocercal caudal fin similar to that of sharks, a flat rostra, and a large toothless, rubbery-like mouth which they can protrude for vacuuming up food from the bottom substrate. Located just in front of the mouth are four barbels, which are covered in sensory organs used for finding food.