An endangered Atlantic Sturgeon, measuring 61 inches long, seems to have gotten lost on the Tar River.

What You Need To Know

  •  Researchers rescued an endangered Atlantic sturgeon from a stream near downtown Greenville, North Carolina

  •  They released the prehistoric-looking fish into the Tar River

  •  Sturgeon are prized as the source of caviar, but this species is federally protected

  • Atlantic sturgeon are native to the East Coast, but this is only the third to be documented on the Tar River

The prehistoric-looking fish ended up stranded in a stream in downtown Greenville, North Carolina, according to the North Carolina Wildlife Commission.

Researchers rescued an Atlantic Sturgeon from a stream in downtown Greenville, N.C., and released it back into the Tar River. (NC Wildlife Commission)

The Atlantic Sturgeon is native to North Carolina's waters, but this is only the third time one has been documented going up the Tar River, the commission said.

Sturgeon, prized as a source of caviar, spend most of their lives in salt water, but will swim up rivers to spawn. Scientists with the commission say this fish is likely a male, so local Greenville caviar may be out of the question for tailgating at the next East Carolina University game. 

Someone spotted the 61-inch fish in a stream in Green Springs Park in downtown Greenville earlier this month and called the state's Wildlife Helpline.

The Wildlife Commission got some of its scientists, along with others from UNC Wilmington and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and found the sturgeon stranded. They managed to catch the fish, took genetic samples and tagged it.

The researchers brought the sturgeon back out to the Tar River, where it was released to continue its journey.