It is unclear why Caspian sturgeons have not been included in the 1999 Red Data Book of Turkmenistan, and why they reportedly will not be included in the upcoming edition. Numbers at the four strategically important haul-out sites along the Turkmen coast (Kara-Ada Island, Tyuleni Islands, Oshushnoy Island and southern Ogurchinsky Island), which are outside the core reproduction range of the species, used to be in the order of several thousands but had shrunk to a maximum of a few hundred in 2008/2009. Current threats in Turkmenistan reportedly include disturbance, poaching and by-catch in illegal sturgeon nets. The species will be listed as endangered in the upcoming edition of the Red Data Book of Turkmenistan.