what fish is caviar from

Caviar is a delicacy made from the unfertilized eggs (roe) of a large fish called the sturgeon. Traditionally, the term caviar refers only to roe from wild sturgeon in the Caspian Sea and Black Sea, including beluga, ossetra, and sevruga caviars. However, the term caviar can also describe the roe of other species of sturgeon or other fish such as paddlefish, salmon, steelhead, trout, lumpfish, whitefish, or carp. Real caviar comes from cultivated sturgeon grown in aquaculture or ponds. Animals of the genera Acipenser and Huso are particularly important for caviar production. European House Sturgeon is a hybrid of Beluga caviar crossed with Asetra, and it is the most common source of caviar. Other species of sturgeon that are relevant for caviar production include Persian Sturgeon, White Sturgeon, Chinese Sturgeon, Sterlet, Adriatic Sturgeon, and Starry Sturgeon. If the roe does not come from specimens of the sturgeon family, the caviar fish must be declared as an additional designation on the product. For example, so-called “German caviar” is a popular product made from the roe of the lumpfish that is salted and tinted black to look as similar as possible to the original.