Members of the sturgeon family are the largest fish inhabiting the fresh waters of North America-and some are also among the smallest. The white sturgeon, which is found in rivers along the Pacific Coast, has been known to reach a weight of almost a ton, and today's anglers of the Pacific Northwest commonly catch whites in the 200- to 300-pound range. Shovelnoses, on the other hand, seldom exceed a few pounds in weight in their Midwestern home waters.