Fish river names. What freshwater fish is found in the reservoirs of Russia. carp and carp

Pike perch is a relative of perch, which lives only in clean water, provided with oxygen for its life and activity. There are no phosphates or other impurities in this fish. The growth of pike perch is 35 cm. Its maximum weight is 20 kg.

Pike perch meat is light and lean, but very tasty. It is saturated with phosphorus, chromium, sulfur, potassium, fluorine, cobalt, iodine and vitamin P. This fish is quite healthy in composition.

Bersh

Bersh also belongs to the perch family. Its height is 45 cm. The largest fish weight is 1.4 kg. This species lives in rivers that flow into the Black and Caspian Seas.

Bersh feeds on not very large fish, mainly gudgeon. The meat is similar to pike perch, but a little softer.

How to catch more fish?

I have been active fishing for quite some time and have found many ways to improve the bite. But the most effective was and remains.

It attracts fish in cold and warm water with the help of pheromones included in the composition and stimulates their appetite. Suitable for both summer and winter fishing.

Perch

Perch lives in rivers, lakes, ponds, which have only clean water. That is, we can say that this fish is not picky and is found almost everywhere where it is clean.

To catch a perch, it is necessary to use only certain thin gear. Thanks to this, catching it is quite interesting and entertaining.

Ruff

In appearance, the ruff looks like a monster. It has such spiny fins to protect itself from predatory fish like pike. This fish is found in ponds and rivers, however, depending on the habitat, it changes color. The height is 13 cm, and the weight is approximately 400 g.

Such growth of a ruff depends on an excess of crayfish, insects and larvae that they feed on. This type of fish is common in many European countries. It is found mainly in rivers, lakes, seasides and ponds.

Spawns from two days to several weeks. This fish does not like sunlight, so you can meet it at a depth of at least two meters.

chop

This fish is extremely rare in our area, so few people know about it. The fish belong to the perch family. It has an elongated spindle-shaped body, decorated with a snout protruding forward.

This fish is small in size, that is, its length is less than 1 foot. The main residence of the chop is the Danube River with adjacent tributaries.

The chop feeds on worms, mollusks, fish of not huge sizes. Caviar, which has a bright yellow color, is thrown from the end of April.

Pike

Pike belongs to the pike family. It has spread in fresh water bodies of the Eurasian and North American continents. We can say that this fish is distributed almost all over the world only in water that is saturated with oxygen.

With a decrease in the amount of oxygen, it dies. Height is 1.5 m, weight ranges from 35 kg. The body and head of the pike are elongated. It can spawn only at temperatures from three to six degrees. The pike is a carnivorous fish.

It feeds mainly on low-value fish. Lives everywhere. The meat contains little fat and is dietary. They live no more than 25 years. In cooking, this type of fish is used in raw, boiled, fried and stewed form.

Roach

Roach has become very widespread in the Russian Federation.

It lives in rivers, ponds and lakes.

The color of the fish depends on the composition of the water in which it lives.

It looks like a redfin.

Roach feeds mainly on algae, fry of various small fish and various midge larvae.

With the onset of winter, winter leaves.

Spawning starts later than pike, somewhere as far as the end of spring, and before spawning it is covered with small white spots.

Roach caviar is very soft, transparent and has a green tint.

Bream

The bream is a soft fish, but it has delicious taste. Prefers to live in calm water with a slow current.

Their life expectancy is 20 years, however, they grow slowly. For example, a bream that lives 10 years has a weight of only three or four kilograms.

The fish has a silvery-dark color. Life expectancy is seven to eight years. The length varies within 41 cm, and the weight reaches 800 g. Spawning begins in the spring.

It feeds on aquatic plankton, invertebrate larvae and crayfish mollusks. It lives mainly in the Black and Caspian Seas. In cooking, it is used in different forms: fried, boiled, salted, smoked and dried.

Guster

Gustera refers to sedentary fish.

The color is bluish gray. Life expectancy of fish is no more than 15 years.

The length is 35 cm and the weight is 1.2 kg. These fish do not grow quickly. They live in calm waters.

Spring and autumn for the silver bream are the period of formation of numerous flocks and dense accumulations.

Hence the name of the fish.

Feeds mainly on insect larvae and small fish molluscs.

Breeding usually spawns at night, in late May or early June at a water temperature of 15 to 17 ° C with a duration of 1 to 1.5 months.

Fish has become widespread in European countries. The meat has a lot of bones and tasteless.

Carp

Carp has a dark yellow-golden color. The life expectancy of a fish is 30 years, but it stops growing at 7 or 8 years. Weight is from 1 to 3 kg, and the height is 100 cm.

Carp is a freshwater fish, but is also found in the Caspian Sea. In summer it feeds on young shoots of reeds and other aquatic plants, as well as young eggs of spawning fish, and in autumn it begins to eat various small insects and invertebrates.

Carp

Carp belongs to the carp family. Has a mustache. Fish feed on undercooked potatoes, breadcrumbs and cake. In winter, carp hibernate. They are very insatiable and gluttonous.

Life expectancy is about 100 years. The fish is yellow-green and brown. It lives in rivers, reservoirs, rates, lakes, which have a bottom filled with silt.

Fish spawn at water temperatures of 18 to 20 degrees in the morning. The weight is about 9 kg. Considered a food fish in China and an ornamental food in Japan.

carp

Carp is the most famous fish among the people.

Lives in almost all reservoirs and ponds in Russia.

It belongs to the carp family. It resembles a carp, only it does not have a mustache.

This fish is hardy and undemanding to water quality. Little respond to lack of oxygen.

In winter, fish can freeze into ice and not die if the internal fluid does not freeze.

Weighs 0.5 kg.

Spawns at a temperature of at least 14 degrees.

Tench

Inhabits rivers and reservoirs overgrown with plants and covered with duckweed carpet.

It is considered a strong fish. It is good to catch tench, starting from the month of August. In terms of taste, the fish is no worse than carp and pike perch. It also makes a good ear.

Chub

The chub is a freshwater fish. Belongs to the carp family. Its length is 80 cm, it weighs about 8 kg. It uses air insects, young crayfish, fish and frogs as food.

Widespread in European countries and Asia Minor. Spawns at water temperature from 12 to 17 °C. Likes to live in areas with strong currents.

Ide

Ide is widespread in all rivers and reservoirs of European countries. Prefers slow flow and deep places. Does not hibernate. Pretty hardy fish. The length is from 35 to 63 cm, weight ranges from 2 to 2.8 kg.

Life expectancy reaches 20 years. It feeds on animal and plant foods. The ide spawns in the spring at a temperature of 2 to 13 degrees.

asp

The asp is the most common species of the carp family.

It has a dark bluish-gray color.

The height of the fish is 120 cm, and the mass varies within 12 kg.

This species lives in the Black and Caspian Seas.

He likes to swim in fast reservoirs, avoiding stagnant places.

Chekhon

It has a silvery, grayish and yellowish color. The length of the fish is 60 cm and the weight is 2 kg. Life expectancy is 9 years. The fish grows pretty fast.

Lives in rivers, lakes, reservoirs, the sea. Young fish first eat phytoplankton and zooplankton, and in late summer they feed on insect larvae. Lives in the Baltic Sea.

Rudd

In appearance, the rudd is similar to roach, but much more attractive. The height is 51 cm, and the weight is 2.1 kg. Life expectancy ranges from 19 years.

It is found in rivers that flow into the Caspian, Azov, Black and Aral Seas. Fish eat animals and plant microorganisms. Especially love caviar of mollusks.

Meat contains many useful minerals such as phosphorus, chromium, vitamin P, proteins and fats.

Podust

Podust has a long body. The life span of a fish is 10 years. The length reaches 40 cm, and the weight is 1.6 kg. Likes fast flowing rivers.

It feeds on microscopic algae that lie at the bottom of rivers. Spawns in April at a temperature of 6 to 8 degrees. Distributed throughout Europe.

Bleak

Bleak is a fish that is known to every person who has picked up a fishing rod at least once. It belongs to the carp family. The size of the fish is from 12 to 15 cm, and the weight reaches about one hundred grams.

It lives in rivers that flow into the Black, Baltic and Azov Seas.

Bystryanka

Quicksand is similar to ordinary bleak. This is a rather small fish and its maximum size was no more than 10 cm. It has a brownish-green color. Weighs about 2 g. Lives about 6 years.

Grows very slowly. It eats zooplankton and algae.

Gudgeon

The minnow belongs to the carp family.

The body of the fish is fusiform.

The size is 15-22 cm.

She lives in water bodies.

Spawns in spring.

Accepts larvae and small invertebrates as food

Cupid white

Fish "White Amur" belongs to the carp family. As food, it accepts only aquatic plants, which are characterized by high growth rates. The growth of the fish is 1.2 m, and it weighs 32 kg. This type of fish is distributed throughout the world.

silver carp

The silver carp feeds on microscopic algae in huge sizes. This is an industrial fish that is easy to acclimatize. She weighs 8 kg. Belongs to the carp family. Fish have teeth that are designed to flatten algae.

The silver carp is widespread in the Republic of China and the Central Asian region. The length of the fish reaches 1 m, and the weight is 25 kg. It is an industrial fish. Silver carps love warm water. In rivers, places with a fast current are selected. They spawn in early spring.

catfish

Catfish is a large freshwater scaleless fish of the catfish family. Its length reaches 5 m, and its weight is 400 kg. The color is brown. Lives in the Russian Federation and other European countries. Refers to inactive fish.

channel catfish

Channel catfish is a fish belonging to the catfish family. It has 37 species of fish that live in North America. The fish has a very slender scaleless body and huge whiskers, which is of particular interest.

Fish spawn at a temperature of 28 degrees. The channel catfish is a heat-loving fish, however, it can winter under the ice.

Acne

The eel is a freshwater fish that belongs to the river eel family. This fish is predatory. Lives in the Baltic, Azov, Black and Barents Seas. It looks like a snake.

It has an elongated cylindrical body and a small head, which is flattened in front. This fish is found in waters with a clay bottom. The eel feeds on a variety of animals that live in mud, crayfish, worms, larvae, snails.

The length is 47 cm, and the weight can reach 8 kg.

snakehead

The snakehead fish lives in swampy areas. Looks like a snake

Burbot

Burbot belongs to the cod-like order.

It has a long, small and round body.

The color is brown and grey.

But it can change depending on the environment.

This fish spawns in the cold season.

Prefers cold and clear waters.

Burbot refers to predators.

Hunts mainly at night.

Feeds on invertebrates and zooplankton. Burbot is an industrial fish.

Loach

The loach fish is one of a small group of fish characterized by a long body that is covered with very small, smooth scales.

In appearance, the loach resembles an eel or a snake. The fish has a long cylindrical body. The length of this fish is 30 cm.

This species is widespread throughout Europe. Fish prefer calm water. He likes to be mainly at the bottom, and comes to the surface only during a thunderstorm or during rains.

Char

The red char fish is a relative of the salmon breed. There are many types of this fish. A characteristic property of the char is that it has the ability to change its color, which depends on the habitat and the number of years.

These fish do not have scales. Has a small size. In cooking, under the influence of high temperature, the char does not decrease in size.

Fish is rich in omega-3s, which are fatty acids that help the body carry out protective functions to fight inflammation.

Lamprey Hungarian

It lives mainly in the river. This fish is widespread in Transcarpathia in Ukraine. The Hungarian lamprey lives in shallow sections of rivers with a clay bottom.

Lamprey Ukrainian

Lamprey Ukrainian feeds on various types of fish. Lives mainly in rivers. Distributed in the basins of Ukraine. Does not like to be deep under water.

Body length is 25 cm, spawns at a water temperature of 8 degrees. After spawning, they live for another two years and die.

Sterlet

It has a dark gray-brown color.

Life expectancy is 27 years.

Length ranges from 1.25 m and weight up to 16 kg.

Lives in rivers.

In winter, it goes into a sedentary state, deepens and does not feed on anything.

Distributed in the Black, Azov, Caspian, White, Barents and Kara Seas.

Belongs to a very valuable industrial fish.

Danube salmon

The Danube salmon is a unique representative of the fish fauna of Ukraine. It lives in the Danube River basin and is not found anywhere else in the world. The fish belongs to the salmon family. Its length is about 1 meter.

Salmon is grey. Spawning begins in April. This fish is a voracious predator that feeds on small fish. The mass of the fish is 140 g, the dimensions vary up to 15 cm.

The life expectancy of the Danube salmon is twenty years.

Brook trout

Brook trout belongs to the salmon family. It has a body length of 25 - 55 cm, and a mass of 0.2 - 2 kg or more. The color changes from dark brown to golden. This fish is sedentary and does not like to migrate.

Trout feeds on crayfish and insect larvae. Trout receive the largest amount of food during a thunderstorm, when a huge number of insect larvae are blown into the water by the wind.

Umber

Umber belongs to the Evdoshkov family. The body measures 10 cm and weighs approximately 30 g. The color is reddish brown. Distribution received in the basin of the Danube and Dniester rivers.

If he hears danger, he burrows into the ground. Spawns in March or April. It eats fish larvae and small invertebrates.

grayling european

European grayling is one of the main industrial fish in the North of the Urals. Spawns in rivers at a temperature of 10 degrees. She is a very predatory fish. Likes to be in fast-flowing rivers.

Carp

The carp is a freshwater fish. Belongs to the carp family. The fish is dark in color. Its length is 60 centimeters. Carp is found in the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas. The weight is about 5 kg.

River fish without bones

There are no bones in the following types of fish:

• in maritime language;
• in fish of the sturgeon family which belong to the chordate order.

Features of river fish

Water is a very dense substance, so the movement of fish in it is difficult. However, her body is adapted to such conditions.

Many fish, especially good swimmers, have a long torpedo or spindle shape. These fish include salmon, podust, dace, chub, asp, sabrefish and herring. Flat-bodied fish live in calm waters with little current. These include bream, rudd and crucian carp.

Among river fish there are predators - these are pike, burbot, pike perch and catfish, which have a terrible mouth, huge jaws and strong teeth. The pike tends to arch when it swallows food.

Fish that feed on small fish have small mouth openings. And those that feed from the bottom and dig the earth have a retractable mouth.

The skin color of many fish varies depending on the habitat. The speed of movement can be from ten to twenty meters per second.

How long have you had a really BIG CATCH?

When was the last time you caught dozens of HEALTHY pikes/carps/breams?

We always want to get results from fishing - to catch not three perches, but ten kilogram pikes - this will be a catch! Each of us dreams of this, but not everyone knows how.

A good catch can be achieved (and we know this) thanks to good bait.

It can be prepared at home, you can buy it in fishing stores. But it is expensive in stores, and to prepare bait at home, you need to spend a lot of time, and, to tell the truth, homemade bait does not always work well.

Do you know that disappointment when you bought bait or cooked it at home, and caught three or four bass?

So maybe it's time to use a really working product, the effectiveness of which has been proven both scientifically and in practice on the rivers and ponds of Russia?

It gives the very result that we cannot achieve on our own, all the more, it is cheap, which distinguishes it from other means and there is no need to spend time on manufacturing - ordered, brought and go!

Of course, it is better to try once than to hear a thousand times. Especially now - the season! When ordering, this is a great bonus!

Learn more about bait!

Our planet has been inhabited by many different animals for millions of years. Among them, a special type stands out - fish. They filled rivers, lakes, seas and oceans. These animals play a large role in the natural food chain as well as in the human habitat. Both marine and river fish serve as a source of food for people, medicines and fertilizers for agriculture, as well as raw materials for light industry. What are these inhabitants of the rivers of our country, how do they survive and what do they eat? This issue deserves due attention, because all living organisms on Earth are essential parts of nature.

Fish of the rivers of Russia

The most common fish living in the rivers of Russia are beluga, pike, burbot, catfish, sturgeon, stickleback, crucian carp, salmon, carp, perch, carp, rudd. And this is not a complete list of them. The fastest river fish include salmon, dace, podust, asp and sabrefish, and the most nimble - rudd, bream, roach, scavenger, tench and crucian carp. These aquatic vertebrates are divided into predatory and peaceful inhabitants. What river fish eat directly depends on this division. The former feed on smaller representatives of this class, while the latter spend most of their time looking for plankton and plant foods. In the reservoirs of Russia, especially in the summer, various algae grow rapidly, which are a haven for crustaceans and mollusks. And this is not just food, but a kind of delicacy for fish. Predators (for example, pike, pike perch, perch), in turn, feed on smaller fish.

The largest representatives of river fish

Nowadays, any river fish with a length of more than 1.80 meters and a weight of at least 90 kg is considered a large individual. Record holders in size are several species of these aquatic vertebrates. One of them is a beluga. Its weight reaches 1400 kg, and its length is about five meters. Not far behind the size of the beluga and pike. Its largest representatives are found in the northern rivers of Russia.

European (ordinary) catfish weighs about 350 kg and is up to 4.5 meters long. It lives in almost all large rivers of both Russia and the CIS. The catfish is unusual in that its body consists of a huge head and a huge tail.

The most valuable freshwater fish

River fish of Russia have their most valuable specimens. The most expensive of them is the Russian beluga. So, for example, a female caught in the Tikhaya Pine River, weighing 1227 kg, produced 240 kg of very high quality caviar. Its value today is about two hundred thousand dollars.

The second most expensive is carp. It belongs to the category of especially valuable commercial fish. For example, in the seventies in the delta of the Volga River, the catch of carp was at least ten thousand tons per year.

Fish of the rivers of Primorye

Russia has a huge territory, in the reservoirs of which many different species of fish live. So, considering the inhabitants of fresh water bodies of the Primorsky Territory, one can count about one hundred and fifty of their varieties. Some, such as the Sakhalin taimen, are even listed in the Red Book. Other river fish of Primorye can boast the most unusual names - for example, snake catcher, gubar horse, yellow-cheeked and skygazer. In addition to the mentioned fish, Amur pike, catfish, crucian carp, carp, salmon, lenok, kuzhda and grayling live in local fresh waters. One of the most unpretentious and common fish of the Primorsky Territory is the rudd. And although many locals consider it too bony, but in terms of taste, it is magnificent. There are two types of rudd: small-scaled and large-scaled. Usually this fish grows up to half a meter in length and weighs up to one and a half kilograms.

Fishing in the suburbs

For those who like to go fishing for many years, the Moscow region has been a favorite place for a relaxing holiday. Amazing nature, quiet evenings, clean air and plenty of fish in the reservoirs - all that is needed for Russian fishing. The rivers Pakhra, Severka, Ruza, Istra, Nerskaya, Protva, Nara, Besputa, Dubna, Sestra and others hide various popular and tasty fish in their waters. These are perch, and carp, and crucian, and roach, and pike, and gudgeon, and bream, and chub, and bream, and asp, and bleak. River fish of the Moscow region are caught both with the help of fishing rods and with the help of spinning, fly fishing, boat and bale.

Pike - the queen of Russian rivers

Speaking about the fish that are found on the territory of Russia, one cannot fail to mention the heroine of Russian fairy tales - the pike. It lives not only in the reservoirs of our country, but also in the rivers of Europe, as well as Asia and the United States of America. The size of the pike is predetermined by the food base: the larger the average size of the fish in the river, the larger the pike can grow. It is rightfully considered one of the most predatory freshwater fish. Her appearance fully testifies to this: a long flattened head with a huge mouth and a lot of sharp teeth looks intimidating. Many river fish have become prey for this agile predator. The color of pike is mostly gray-green, with speckles. Thanks to the slippery cylindrical body, they move quickly and swiftly. Pike feed mainly on smaller fish (roach, perch and others), but there are often cases of eating individuals of their own species. In addition, the diet of these predators includes amphibians, and reptiles, and large insects, and various garbage, and small mammals, and even chicks of waterfowl.

Rare and endangered fish

Today, on the territory of Russia, many river fish need human participation and care, the list of which is increasing every year. These include the Azov beluga, sterlet, Volga herring, Volkhov whitefish, black carp, Baikal grayling, Baikal sturgeon, sculpin, Kamchatka salmon and others. All these fish are on the verge of extinction. Take, for example, the Volkhov whitefish, which earlier, before the construction of the Volkhov hydroelectric power station (1925), played a large role in fishing and was found in large quantities in the Volkhov, Syaz, Svir rivers.

The catch of the Baikal sturgeon in the nineteenth century reached three thousand centners, and in the nineties of the twentieth century it was reduced to two hundred centners. Today, most often these river fish are found in Lake Baikal and the rivers flowing into it - the Angara, Kitoy, Belaya, Selenga, Barguzin and Khamar-Daban. A similar fate befell the Baikal grayling, also previously widespread in these waters.

Another endangered species is the black carp. Due to a sharp decrease in the number of this fish in the seventies of the last century, a ban on its catch was established. Today, black carp is found in Lake Khanka, as well as in the Amur and Ussuri rivers.

Impact of the environmental situation

Unfortunately, today the ecological situation affects many river systems. Quite often there are cases of river pollution by emissions from factories and industrial enterprises, storm sewage, which include various hazardous chemicals. River fish, crayfish, turtles and other inhabitants under such circumstances not only change their habitual way of life, but also become victims of mutations or disappear altogether. And it's not a secret for anyone that an insufficient amount of attention from the human society can lead to an irreparable environmental disaster.

River fish is an essential source of protein in the human diet, as well as amino acids and vitamins. The value of river fish has been established for a long time, and the variety is so great that sometimes you can’t immediately make out what kind of individual is in your hands.

Knowing what a certain species looks like and what characterizes it will also be useful to a fisherman, since each species has its own behavioral characteristics and food preferences.

Zander

Pike perch belongs to the family of perch fish. It is quite simple to recognize pike perch by its color and peculiar physique. Pike perch belongs to predators, therefore the shape of the body corresponds to a similar type of survival: the body of the surveillance is oblong and flattened on the sides.

From above, near the large fin and along the perimeter of the back, the color is dark green, but already on the sides the color turns into mother-of-pearl.

Also on the sides are vertical stripes, dark green in color, which pike perch uses to camouflage when hunting - often there are from 8 to 10 pieces.

The lower part, or belly, is light. The scales of pike perch are quite small, as for river fish, but the average for predatory fish.

Fins yellowish. Fang-shaped teeth are located in the oral cavity, and between them there may also be small ones.

Pike perch lives in clean waters, with a lot of oxygen. It feeds on small fish and is able to grow up to 20 kg.

Bersh

Bersh, like pike perch, belongs to schooling predatory fish. The color is very similar to the color of zander, only the stripes on the sides are more expressive. The scales are slightly larger than those of ordinary predatory fish, there are no fangs on the lower lip. Reaches up to a kilogram in weight, with a body length of half a meter.

Perch

The body is similar in color to pike perch, but the structure is different. There is a hump between the first fin on the back and the head, it is noteworthy that there are two fins on the back.

The first fin has a black spot in the back, and both dorsal fins are dark in color, but the rest are orange. This species is distinguished by the ability to adapt to any conditions, which made it a picky inhabitant of the reservoir.

Ruff

Belongs to the perch family and outwardly you can recognize it by a spotted, black dot, back, including on the dorsal fin. The ruff is known for being very spiky when handled, due to its fins and gill covers.

The ruff grows only up to 30 cm and is not very muscular, which makes it of little value to fishermen. It feeds mainly on small insects, fish fry, but does not disdain leeches.

chop

The fish is part of the perch family, although its elongated yellowish cylinder-shaped body can be confusing in definition. Only four weakly expressed stripes on the body reinforce confidence in family ties with the perch.

Chop belongs to sedentary fish, and feeds mainly on larvae, worms and young fish.

The fish does not belong to the category of mass fishermen and is rarely caught by fishermen, but it is distinguished by enviable vitality - it easily transfers movement from one reservoir to another.

Pike

A fairly well-known predatory fish that is hard to confuse. In shape, the body slightly resembles a torpedo.

Depending on the habitat, the color can be completely different: gray, black, dark green.

Gray or brown color may be added.

The belly is often white, but on the sides there may be light dots of different sizes or stripes of completely different shapes and anywhere.

Fins are yellowish-red.

The pike is a solitary predator and hunts by waiting for prey in cover, using camouflage and a powerful jaw full of razor-sharp teeth.

It feeds on small fish, but there are cases when pike attacked water birds. Pike grows up to 40 kg.

Roach

The roach is a schooling fish. It has a slanting body, surveillance is compressed on the sides. The fins below the lateral line of the fish have an orange-red light, and those above are dark, with a red coating on the ends.

The iris of the eyes is orange. The color of the scales is uniformly silvery, with the exception of a greenish back. This species is very common, and often hides from predators in the grass.

The fish is not very whimsical about food: it feeds on caviar, worms, and small mollusks. Cases have been recorded when fish even swallowed berries that fell from the bushes into the water.

It grows no more than 45 cm in length and weighs up to 2 kilograms, but the most common is a length of 20 cm.

Bream

A small head and a high flattened body make it possible to immediately recognize this type of fish belonging to the carp family.

Depending on age, the scales may be light gray in young individuals, or golden in older individuals.

Fins in any case will be gray and inconspicuous.

The bream lives in reservoirs with a small current and keeps to the bottom, in search of peace.

Feeds mainly on larvae, worms, small crustaceans and algae.

The bream grows up to half a meter in length and weighs up to 5 kg, and is a welcome trophy for any fisherman.

White-eye

It got its name from the white iris. The white-eye is a subspecies of the bream, but is distinguished by a smaller hump on the back and large eyes, relative to the body. The color is similar to the color of the bream, except that the back may have a bluish tint.

Habits are very similar to bream, but it chooses water bodies with a high flow rate, but still stays closer to the bottom. It feeds on algae and small larvae, less often on molluscs. It grows up to 30 cm in length and weighs no more than one kilogram.

Guster

It belongs to close relatives of the bream, and can often even be confused, since the shape of the body is almost identical. You can distinguish by larger scales and reddish fin bases, which you will not find in bream.

It prefers calm waters, but does not always keep to the bottom - fish can be caught in any part. It feeds, like all representatives of cyprinids, algae, worms, mollusks and grows up to 30 cm and not more than half a kilogram.

Carp

Carp refers to schooling fish. He has a long body, and sometimes even high.

The color of the carp is dark brown on top and becomes more golden towards the belly.

On the back it has a long fin that reaches almost to the tail.

He also has a pair of mustaches at the corners of his lips, and a pair of short ones above his upper lip.

Preferably found in water bodies with little or reverse flow.

Carp grows up to a meter and over 20 kilograms, so it is quite voracious and not bitter in food: it feeds on both animal and vegetable food, sometimes it can even eat tree branches lowered into the water.

Carp

The legacy of the wild carp is the domesticated carp. It is less picky than common carp and is a valuable industrial fish due to the taste of meat, and is therefore specially bred.

Carp lives mainly at depth, and comes out to feed in shallow water. There are many subspecies, bred taking into account the necessary needs for the amount of meat and scales.

Carp: gold and silver

The crucian carp belongs to the family of cyprinids, and outwardly retained its features: a high body and flattened sides.

The body of the silver is slightly more elongated than that of the gold.

Crucian carp is quite hardy, and is found in almost all water bodies where fish live.

Golden carp is more hardy than silver carp and lives in small stagnant ponds, and silver carp in flowing ones.

The crucian feeds on everything it finds, and like all cyprinids, it is omnivorous.

Golden crucian grows up to 3 kg, and silver only up to two.

lyn

The lyn is notable for its low energy, and it got its name, as it kind of “molts” when it is taken out of the water. This happens because the body of the fish is covered with mucus, which hardens and falls off in the sun.

The lyn has a thick, clumsy body. The back is dark green, the sides are olive, and closer to the belly the color becomes yellowish, the fins are gray-brown.

The lynx rarely changes its habitat, even due to the need for food. It feeds on algae and larvae and can grow up to 60 cm in length and weigh up to 8 kg.

Chub

The body of the fish is almost round. The back is dark green, the sides are silvery, and closer to the belly it becomes silvery white. On the scales one can see typical black borders on the edge of the scales.

Lateral fins are orange; located on the lower part of the belly are bright red, and all the rest are gray. It has a large head with a flat forehead.

Prefers cold water, so it can be found in rivers with fast and medium currents. In the diet, it prefers coma that have fallen into the water, but in general it is omnivorous: it feeds on both algae and small fish, not to mention larvae and worms. Grows up to 8 kg.

Ide

The body of the ide is slightly elongated. The back is silvery, with gilding on the sides and gradually turns white closer to the belly. The fins are all red, except for the tail - it is gray.

It prefers fast and deep rivers, but stays closer to the bottom, and if it comes out in shallow water, it hides under overhanging tree branches. The fish is nocturnal, and the diet is almost similar to that of the chub. The ide grows up to 70 cm in length and can weigh up to 8 kg.

asp

Asp refers to predatory fish, but prefers loneliness to a flock. The body is oblong, slightly compressed laterally, but rather rounded than flat.

The color is typical, like many fish: a dark green back, silvery sides and a white belly.

The lateral and ventral fins are red, while the rest are grey. The fish has a large oblique mouth, but without teeth, but has a tubercle on the upper lip, and a depression on the lower one, which looks like a regular bite.

Prefers fast ponds, rapids and mountain rivers. It feeds on small fish and insects falling into the water. He hunts quite interestingly: he waits for the moment and at high speed tumbles into a flock and suddenly grabs small fish. Asp grows weighing up to 10 kg and up to 80 cm long.

Chekhon

Although the sabrefish belongs to the cyprinids, its long body and compressed sides make it doubtful. The fish has a bluish back color, slightly pinkish sides. Like most fish, the ventral and lateral fins are reddish, while the rest are grey.

The sabrefish prefers clean water bodies with a minimum of vegetation. It grows up to 70 cm, but the weight usually does not exceed a kilogram, due to the structure of the body. A feature of the sabrefish is that the scales exfoliate very well.

Rudd

The rudd is distinguished by red fins, hence the name. Outwardly similar to a roach, but the color is more golden, and the head is smaller. It lives in lakes and rivers and prefers to be in the upper layers of the reservoir.

It feeds mainly on algae and insects and grows no more than 1.5 kg.

Podust

Podust is distinguished by the dark color of the lower belly and dark fins. The body is elongated, and the short caudal fin is especially noticeable. It belongs to herbaceous fish, as it feeds on algae that grow on stones at the bottom of the reservoir.

Prefers fast-flowing rivers, and due to its active lifestyle, rarely grows over half a kilogram.

Bleak

The bleak is distinguished by an elongated body, compressed on the sides. The color is typical, except that the brightness of the silvery scales in the sun dazzles. It lives in clean and quiet rivers and lakes, more often in reservoirs.

It feeds on insects and their larvae, caviar of other fish, but basically it can be considered the food of other fish, since it is often found near the surface of the water, and grows no more than 20 cm.

Bystryanka

The quicksand is somewhat similar to the bleak, but has a taller, but shorter body. The difference is also in the two-point line, drawn by a dotted line along the lateral line. It grows no more than 12 cm in length, and is found mainly in rivers, less often in lakes.

Gudgeon

The minnow is distinguished by a grayish-brown color of the back and yellowish-silver sides with a belly. The body is elongated and rounded, with a pair of whiskers at the corners of the lips. Prefers clean shallow waters, where it prefers to keep the bottom.

It feeds mainly on animal food such as worms and larvae, less often on small mollusks.

White amur

The grass carp has a typical body color with a dark back and a gradual lightening to the belly. The upper and caudal fin are dark, and all the rest are light, closer to transparent.

For life, cupid chooses clean flowing reservoirs with quiet backwaters. It belongs to herbivorous fish, but at the same time it is able to grow up to 30 kg and up to 120 cm long.

silver carp

The silver carp, as the name implies, has a thick and wide forehead. The color is typical, except for the yellowish fins. It belongs to valuable industrial species of fish, and is found in clean water bodies with a slight current, but prefers reservoirs.

Able to grow up to a meter in length and weigh 20 kg, despite the fact that the diet is purely vegetable.

catfish

Catfish is distinguished by a dull brown color and a huge head with two long mustaches on the sides and four short ones on the beard. The mouth is quite wide and strewn with sharp teeth, which is not surprising for a predator.

This species is considered settled and rarely leaves its habitat. The catfish is found in clean, but deep-sea waters and can reach 5 meters in length and weigh 300 kg. Given its enormous size and clumsiness, it also feeds on carrion.

channel catfish

Like the "big brother", channel catfish is a predatory fish. It is distinguished by a lighter color compared to the usual catfish and smaller sizes - it can grow up to only 45 kg and no more than 1.5 meters.

Prefers clear waters, but keeps to the bottom. It feeds on animal food, such as small crustaceans, worms, molluscs, larvae.

Acne

The eel differs in the structure of the body, like a snake. Refers to predatory fish. Outwardly, it is brown-green, with yellowness on the sides.

A feature is the absence of a posterior fin - it is stretched from the back to the belly along the wedge-shaped back of the body. It feeds on animal food, sometimes even frogs.

snakehead

It got its name for a flattened head resembling a snake and atypical for fish, color - yellow-brown body, in places with chaotic spots.

It belongs to predators, and therefore has sharp teeth. Prefers rivers with large vegetation, but feeds on small fish and frogs. Able to reach a mass of 8 kg and a length of one meter.

Burbot

It has an elongated body and a pair of long symmetrical fins on the belly and back. The color is also specific: the body is brown-brown-green with dark and light spots.

There are antennae on the chin and at the nostrils. It feeds mainly on animal food, but does not disdain carrion. Able to grow up to 25 kg.

Loach

It is distinguished by a long, elongated body with a dark yellowish color, lighter towards the belly and dark stripes along the body. It is very hardy and chooses reservoirs with a silty bottom, where it feeds on larvae and small living creatures. Able to grow up to 30 cm.

Char

It has an elongated body, with a dark green back, gray-yellow sides and a yellow belly. A distinctive feature is the six antennae on the chin. It feeds on caviar and small living creatures and does not grow more than 10 cm.

Lamprey Hungarian

The body is elongated, and resembles an eel. On the back there are two untouchable fins from the middle of the body, almost to the tail. It has an interesting coloration: a dark gray back turns into silvery sides and a white-yellowish belly.

Prefers clean waters and is close to extinction due to river pollution. Does not grow more than 30 cm.

Lamprey Ukrainian

The body is eel-shaped with a three-color color: a gray back, sides are silvery, and closer to the belly it becomes whitish. Differs in a lighter color than that of the Hungarian lamprey. May have a row of teeth on the lower lip.

It prefers extremely clean river basins and is able to reach 50 cm in length, but often does not exceed 20 cm.

Sterlet

It has an elongated, not high and spindle-shaped body with a dark gray color on the back, lighter on the sides and a light belly. A feature is the spikes on the lateral line, the number of which reaches 50.

It lives in clean water bodies and keeps closer to the sandy bottom. Able to grow up to 16 kg and over a meter long.

Danube salmon

The body of salmon is long and resembles the shape of a cylinder. It has a dark gray color to the middle of the belly, then it gradually brightens. A feature are black spots scattered throughout the body.

Prefers deep clean rivers, and stays close to the bottom. Able to reach weights up to 20 kg.

Brook trout

The body is elongated and not flattened laterally. The color is changeable, but a dark gray back and a light belly are characteristic. Dark or pinkish dots are scattered all over the body. Inhabits fast mountain rivers with rocky bottoms.

Able to grow up to 2 kg, but usually the weight does not exceed one kilogram.

Umber

It has an elongated body covered with large scales. The back is dark, with light brown sides and a golden belly; has dark spots scattered over the body.

Armed with small teeth and lives in stagnant waters with good vegetation. It grows no more than 12 cm and feeds on small fish and spineless.

grayling european

It has a long, low body with a high dorsal fin. The back has a brownish tint, and the sides have a metallic sheen. Along the body it has yellowish stripes, and black spots are scattered near the head.

It lives in clean cold water bodies and usually does not exceed 30 cm and 300 grams.

Carp

The body structure is similar to salmon: oblong and thick, in the form of a cylinder. The back is dark gray with a green tint with grayish sides and a light belly. It lives in estuaries and lives in small flocks. Able to grow up to 8 kg.

Is there a river fish without bones? Answer: it happens! If we take the list considered, then the bones are absent in the body of catfish, eel and lampreys. The sterlet's skeleton is completely cartilaginous.

Features of river fish

Due to the limited habitat, one can meet fish with clearly expressed adaptive features. Predators have an elongated body with a camouflage color and are quite muscular. Non-predatory river fish are characterized by a high and flat body, often silvery in color with bright fins.

Fish, as an equal participant in the Earth's ecological system, plays an important role in human life. Sea and river fish are an inexhaustible source that supplies a person not only with tasty and healthy food, but also with unique components for the production of agricultural fertilizers and medicines. In addition, fish components are included in some types of raw materials used in light industry.

List of inhabitants of freshwater reservoirs

The gastronomic value of Russian freshwater fish is a long and firmly established fact. However, the variety of species of river fish found in catches is so great that only an experienced fishing enthusiast can figure out which representative of the ichthyofauna was caught from the river. The list of river fish names presented below is quite wide, but by no means exhaustive. So, lake and river inhabitants of fresh water bodies of Russia:

The presented list of fish is voluminous, but the importance of the correct identification of each individual caught can hardly be overestimated. It depends on many factors that affect the result of fishing. These are the features of the behavior of the object of hunting, and preferences in food.

Popular objects of fishing

All representatives of the ichthyofauna found in the fresh waters of Russian rivers, lakes and reservoirs are divided into predatory, omnivorous and species that prefer to eat plant foods and plankton. The best-known carnivorous fish are, without a doubt, zander, perch and catfish. But the absolute leadership of this conditional rating belongs to the pike.

Common pike

The body of the predator has the shape of a torpedo, which allows him to make sharp throws, because his favorite pike hunting option - ambush. Color camouflage type, a fairly wide range of colors, from gray to almost black or dark green. Brownish hues may be present depending on habitat. The white color of the belly provides predator camouflage against the sky. Fins yellowish-red.

The basis of the diet is small fish, but large individuals are able to attack waterfowl, amphibians and small animals leading a semi-aquatic lifestyle: muskrats, beaver cubs and otters. Usually, the weight of a pike rarely exceeds 15-18 kg, but in large and densely populated water bodies, some specimens can reach 40 kg in weight.

river perch

Another characteristic representative of predatory fish that live in inland waters of Russia. It lives in flocks at shallow depths, preferring quiet, clear waters. It has a greenish-yellow or gray-green color with characteristic gray, sometimes reaching black, transverse stripes.

The characteristic feature of the species is the dorsal fin. divided into two parts. The anterior is rather rigid, with sharp needles. The back of the fin is soft. The color of the pelvic and anal fins varies from pale orange to bright red.

The perch's diet is quite diverse and consists of small fish, including its own species, insects and crustaceans that live in the water and near it.

The most popular baits are small-sized spinners and animal baits: worm, bloodworm and small live bait.

The size of river perch rarely exceeds 40–45 cm and weighs 1.0–1.5 kg.

Golden crucian (silver)

This species, which is perhaps the most famous representative of the carp family, lives in almost all water bodies of Russia. Large and small rivers and lakes, reservoirs and ponds, reclamation canals and water-filled quarries - all these are places where crucian carp can be found. He is absolutely indifferent to the quality of water and even to its short-term absence.

It leads a benthic lifestyle, feeding on zooplankton, insect larvae, worms and aquatic plants. The body is rounded, slightly compressed on both sides, covered with smooth scales. There are two species forms of this fish: gold and silver. According to belonging to one of the forms color varies from silver to golden hues.

It reaches 50-60 cm in size and weighs 2.5-3.0 kg. The most common fishing tool is a fly rod, but it is also successfully caught on bottom gear. In winter, it is inactive, so the summer months are considered the most favorable fishing time.

Russian sturgeon

This inhabitant of Russian rivers can, without exaggeration, be called one of the hallmarks of Russia. Sturgeon is a fairly large fish. The body length of individual specimens can reach six meters. The weight of commercial sturgeons varies in the range of 10-20 kg, however, there are known facts of catching specimens weighing 7-8 centners or more.

The fusiform elongated body of the fish, consisting of cartilaginous tissues, does not contain vertebrae. In it throughout the life of the sturgeon, the notochord is preserved. Scales missing, and on the body of the fish there are peculiar diamond-shaped bony scutes-bugs. The sturgeon has a color that is various variations of gray, turning on the belly into white or grayish-yellow. The fins of the fish are usually dark grey.

The Russian sturgeon, however, like its Siberian or Amur relatives, leads a benthic lifestyle, descending to depths of up to a hundred meters, where, in fact, it finds food for itself.

The diet of the sturgeon is varied and includes insect larvae, shrimps, worms and leeches; it does not disdain small fish. With a lack of protein food, the sturgeon successfully consumes algae.

The fact that the sturgeon belongs to long-lived fish cannot but be of interest. The average life expectancy of this amazing fish is 50-60 years, but history knows examples of catching century-old specimens.

river eel

This unique fish is extremely similar to a snake, as it has an elongated, rounded and slightly laterally compressed body. Layer of thick mucus covering an eel, makes it very slippery, which often helps him return to the water after meeting with the angler. The caudal, dorsal and anal fins form a kind of ribbon that borders a significant part of the fish's body.

The color of the eel entirely depends on the age and living conditions. A characteristic metallic luster is considered a feature of the color, which allows the fish to be called silver.

The habitats of the river eel are characterized by a clay bottom and a weak current. It is there that he finds his livelihood, which is served by worms and crustaceans. It is caught with the help of float and bottom rods, as a rule, at night. Live bait serves as bait. Eel meat is very nutritious and extremely tasty, especially when smoked.

Gastronomic value of freshwater fish

Despite the fact that, according to experts, river fish is inferior to sea fish in terms of benefits for the human body, the content of mineral and vitamin substances in its meat is quite high. River fish fillet contains a lot of tocopherol, vitamins A and D. Therefore, regular consumption of river fish meat has an extremely positive effect on hair health, gives the skin a healthy glow and pleasant color, and maintains the stability of the organs of vision.

A person who systematically eats fish that lives in fresh water rarely has to be in a state of stress, since magnesium, which is part of fish meat, improves the activity of the nervous system. And this, in turn, eliminates irritability, normalizes sleep.

How much fish do you need to eat? Nutritionists determine the rate of consumption of fish meat at 150-200 g daily.

It is no secret that the gastronomic value of fish largely depends on its bone structure, and according to this indicator, river fish is significantly inferior to sea fish. Nevertheless, among the representatives of fresh water there are species whose meat is practically boneless. The fish of Russian rivers and haute cuisine did not bypass their attention. So, from pike, whose meat is considered by many to be low-grade, European chefs prepare a masterpiece dish - “Gefilte fish”.

Endangered and rare species

Today, human help is needed by many representatives of the ichthyofauna living in Russian reservoirs. And the most depressing fact is the constant expansion of this sad list:

All these and some other species of fish are balancing on the verge of extinction from the face of our planet. For example, the Volkhov whitefish until the mid-thirties of the last century was the main object of commercial fishing in the basins of the Svir, Volkhov, Syaz rivers. However, the commissioning of the Volkhovskaya HPP "sentenced" this valuable fish to extinction.

Red Book

The compilers of the Red Book classified endangered and rare fish species living in the reservoirs of the Russian Federation into five categories. The number indicator was chosen as the main selection criterion:

1. Species whose abundance is at a critical level and which are threatened with extinction.
2. Species with a rapidly declining population.
3. Rare, found in limited areas or in small quantities.
4. Little known and poorly studied species.
5. Recovered species whose increasing numbers need to be controlled.

It should be noted that due to the difficulties arising from accounting errors, some species of freshwater fish could be in the Red Book unreasonably. The state of ecology of many river systems located on the territory of the Russian Federation is not conducive to optimism either.

Pollution of water bodies with wastewater containing high-risk chemicals and harmful emissions from industrial enterprises not only lead to a change in the habitual lifestyle of representatives of the ichthyofauna, but also threaten with mutations and the complete disappearance of the latter.

Attention, only TODAY!

More than 400 species of freshwater fish have been registered in Russia. Even experienced fishermen sometimes do not know the name of the prey, but the qualifications of the main freshwater fish are determined quite accurately. Each species has distinctive features of behavior, nutrition and reproduction.

The behavior of freshwater individuals differs little from marine life. The basic principle of their presence in the water is simple: the larger the fish, the deeper the horizon of the reservoir, on which it spends most of its existence.

River fish often migrate in search of food, with temperature and atmospheric pressure fluctuations. The habitats of river fish largely depend on the time of year. In spring, they usually go to the mouths of rivers or to areas overgrown with grass for spawning.

In summer, when the water warms up, many individuals go to open areas of reservoirs with clear water. And with the onset of cold weather, especially in the dead of winter, many freshwater go to the depths, into the pits, where they almost fall into suspended animation and become inactive.

The main feature of river fish: they are predatory and peaceful. Carnivores feed on their own kind, only smaller in size. Peaceful prefer vegetable food. But this division is conditional.

For example, ruff does not eat plant food, but it cannot hunt anyone because of its small size, so its main diet is insects and small larvae.

Freshwater fish species

Zander

One of the most common and active predators of Russian fresh waters. It lives in water bodies of Eastern Europe, Asia, in the basins of the Black, Baltic, Aral, Caspian and Azov Seas.

Large river fish, can grow to a length of more than a meter. Weight with such dimensions reaches 15 kg.

Pike perch is a solitary fish, although it belongs to the perch family, whose representatives love to live in flocks. At a young age, some individuals stray into small flocks for the sake of a successful hunt. Active around the clock and all year round. At night, it goes hunting on the shallows, during the day it stays in the pits.

This predator is fast. For a long time it can swim at a speed of up to a meter per second, in case of danger or detection of prey, jerks accelerate to 2 m / s.

It feeds on small species of fish, as its throat is relatively narrow. Sometimes it stuns a flock of fry by jumping out of the water and hitting it with its tail. Pike perch does not live in dirty water.

Lives an average of 15-16 years, but the population is declining today, as the fish is considered commercial because of its taste.

Bersh

Fish are often confused with pike perch due to their external similarity. Plus, flocks of young bersh usually feed next to walleye, when it stuns fry with its powerful throws, these fish are often caught together.

Bersh is smaller than pike perch, it is not distributed throughout Russia, but in the Volga, Don, Donets and Dnieper. It never occurs in lakes, sometimes it settles in large Volga reservoirs.

The main differences between bersh and zander:

• scales are clearly visible on the gills, the zander does not have it there;
• the size of the bersh is much smaller;
• the muzzle is shorter and wider;
• pike perch have fewer scales;
• the stripes of the bersh are clearer and more symmetrical;
• the color gives off more yellowness;
• there is no hump characteristic of pike perch.

The fish are kept in schools and at depth. The greatest hunting activity is shown in the early morning and in the late afternoon. Bersh lives on average for about 8 years, but some individuals in favorable conditions can reach up to 12, reaching a height of 60 cm.

Perch

One of the most common fish. It is not only in Spain. Feels comfortable in fresh rivers and lakes, in brackish waters of Kyrgyzstan and the Caspian.

Perch is the most annoying fish for fishermen, especially if it is small. It belongs to predatory, but does not shun any animal protein food, including worms, which it swallows immediately on the hook deeply.

This fish is shoaling. Especially before spawning, large flocks gather, and the smaller the age of the gathered individuals, the larger the flock.

It hunts small roach and other fish, which fishermen call weedy and of little value. Because of this, it is sometimes specially launched into reservoirs to destroy such trifles.

It feeds actively almost the whole year, going to the depths only in the very wilderness, and is also actively caught. Fans of ice fishing say that you can always catch this striped one, it is so greedy and insatiable.

Despite the mobility and aggressiveness, the perch has many enemies. They are not averse to eating burbot and pike, even slow-witted catfish finds the energy to attack a flock of striped individuals if it is nearby.

The perch is often snatched from the water, even by birds, when it hunts for the next fry near the surface. Its coloration is clearly visible from above. Usually, an adult individual reaches a weight of 800-1200 g. But on large lakes, cases of catching trophy specimens weighing 3 kg and even heavier are described. The average life expectancy is 10 years.

One of the most numerous inhabitants of reservoirs, repeatedly described in literature and fishing studies. In the Russian regions, it lives almost everywhere - from the European part to the Kolyma.

It is unpretentious, can settle even in heavily polluted waters, therefore it is often found near cities. Prefers rivers with a strong current: the ruff needs a lot of oxygen in the water. In winter, they die out en masse, when the lack of air in small lakes is felt especially strongly.

He doesn't like warm water. Cold - just right, and in the summer he prefers to go to the depths, into the pits, where the temperature is lower.

The ruffe feeds all year round, and can hunt even at night. His eyesight is not very good, but he catches the movements of prey by fluctuations in water and soil. It feeds on small larvae, caviar of other fish, if you're lucky - small fry.

Despite the spines on the body, both pike and catfish willingly eat it. Waterfowl also like to feast on them, so, despite the fact that the ruff can grow up to 12 cm and live for 11 years, most individuals die much earlier: from natural enemies, oxygen starvation and high water temperature.

chop

This perch species is common in Transcarpathia, especially in the Danube and its tributaries. The French type of chop is known. Fish prefer to settle in rivers with a strong current, with clean water. It stays in the depths, going out to hunt only at dusk, and then it is caught.

However, it is rarely caught on ordinary or spinning tackle, it is more catchy on chop bottom tackle. It feeds on shells, larvae, small fish, does not disdain someone else's caviar. As the water cools, it loses activity.

As a self-defense, it has a prickly front fin and spikes on the gills, so catfish and pike do not touch it, but they willingly eat chop caviar and fry. Waterfowl also actively feed on the fry of this fish, so the chop population has been greatly reduced in recent years.

It came to the point that in Ukraine this type of perch is listed in the Red Book. Life expectancy is about 12 years.

Pike

The most famous inhabitant of Russian reservoirs, even a character in fairy tales. It is distinguished by great voracity, in Canadian lakes there is a species that eats its own relatives, which are smaller in size.

The average size of the common pike, which is found in countries with a temperate climate, is up to 1 m with a weight of 5-8 kg. But sometimes individuals up to 1.8 m long and weighing more than 30 kg are also caught.

At depth, it tries to stay only in winter. At this time, it sharply reduces its activity, but does not stop eating. In the warm season, it goes to small areas, hiding behind snags or in the grass.

From there, from an ambush, she attacks her victim. It's not just small fish. It can easily grab a gaping frog or a small rodent swimming across the river. There are known cases of pike attacks on medium-sized waterfowl.

She does not like running water, but she also hunts on riffles. Spinners are well aware of how swift and sharp its throw is in such places. They argue that, having broken off the lure, the pike will never fit this particular gear, as it has a good visual memory.

There are legends about long-lived pikes, but the average life expectancy is 25-30 years.

The fish, the juveniles of which get the most from the predatory inhabitants of the reservoirs. However, this does not mean at all that the adult roach is shy, nondescript and defenseless. The average length of this inhabitant of almost all fresh water bodies of Europe is 20–25 cm, but fishermen also caught half a meter specimens.

The average weight of roach is also not very impressive - a few tens of grams, but the largest caught weighed about 3 kg.

Fish in different localities and among different nationalities has completely different names: somewhere it is called a path, somewhere it is a ram, in the Far East it is a chebak, and closer to the south it is a vobla. All varieties have common features:

• the body is markedly elongated;
• scales are large;
• the back is dark, the sides are silvery, the fins are red;
• red or yellow eyes;
• pointed mouth.

Roach feeds on plant food, insects and larvae. In summer, it can feed exclusively on algae. It lives among vegetation, hiding from numerous predators. The age to which she can live in favorable conditions is about 10 years.

Not only is it delicious fried, salted, and dried. Catching it is an art. It is very important to correctly determine the habitat.

When the water warms up well, even a large bream comes closer to the shore in search of food. Food is everything that he can find in the mud: larvae, shells, mollusks, aquatic insects. Thoroughly saturated with animal protein, a large bream usually does not finish the meal, but is taken for algae.

Sometimes these fish, usually of medium size, gather in flocks and literally comb the bottom of the reservoir in some area. After such a collective "walk" in search of food, the flock leaves a noticeable trace of literally plowed silt at the bottom.

Large bream weighing about 4-5 kg ​​do not gather in flocks and live alone in pits. In winter, they even descend to great depths of more than 8 m, where they survive the cold.

Even a big bream in the water has its enemies. Predatory fish of the reservoir hunt for its caviar and fry. And the adult individual itself can be attacked by helminths, they are often found in bream.

The average age of the life of a spiny is about 10 years. By this time, he is able to gain weight up to 6 kg with a body length of 75-80 cm.

The body is flat and high. The scales are large. The back has a slight bluish tint, the sides are silvery. Similar to bream, they are from the same family of cyprinids, but the size of the bream is smaller. The weight of the largest specimens rarely exceeds 800 g.

In most Russian reservoirs with average conditions, a large bream is 300 g. Trophy specimens weighing up to 1.5 kg are known.

However, the differences between these fish and in another:

• in the bream, the eyes are slightly downcast, in the silver bream they are noticeably bulging;
• the scales of the bream are noticeably larger;
• the bream has a longer anal fin;
• in the white bream, the teeth are arranged in 2 rows, in the bream - in 1;
• the pectoral fins of the bream have a reddish tint; in bream, these fins are absolutely always gray.

But their habitats and diet are the same. The maximum age of the bream is 15 years.

Carp

Another representative of the carp family. The fish is able to make long seasonal migrations in search of food. When bad weather sets in, it lies in the pits where it likes to live. On the Volga, carp are caught in depressions up to 20-25 m deep, which he rarely leaves, and feeds there.

Sometimes in the same hole, carp calmly get along with catfish. They are even caught one after another, but the catfish, as a rule, reacts to the bait first.

The carp are most active in search of food at night, somewhere in the region of 2-3 hours. It lives in most deep water bodies of Russia, prefers rivers. It eats plant and animal food, which it looks for in algae or soil.

Leeches, dragonfly or caddis larvae, mollusks, crustaceans - this is his favorite food.

In the early morning or warm evenings, it likes to relax in shallow water or feed near the shore. However, it avoids proximity to pike. Carp lives by fish standards for a long time: 30-35 years. The largest caught specimen of about this age weighed 55 kg.

For fishermen, this is one of the most desirable fish. Its meat is very tasty, and its appearance is impressive. And hunting for trophy specimens on feeder fishing (when the feeder with bait is thrown with the same tackle along with the hook and serves as a sinker for it) is a whole science and great entertainment.

Carp grow quickly and impressively: one-year-old specimens reach a length of 20 cm, and adults grow to 1 m or more. In 1997, a carp was caught in Romania, weighing 37 kg. But this is a record. Usually in stores you can buy fish that will pull from 1 to 5-6 kg.

It lives in stagnant water bodies with a quiet current near snags, stones or dense vegetation. Winters in holes. Large individuals prefer loneliness, the rest huddle in flocks to search for food. It eats literally everything: larvae, beetles, insects, in the hungry season it even collects mucus from algae.

Good for breeding in ponds. The Chinese were the first to use it, then it became popular in Europe and America, where it lives safely in wild reservoirs - mainly lakes.

There are several types of carp: golden, naked. But the mirror carp meat is considered the most delicious. He lives on average up to 30 years, but there were specimens that floated in the water for almost a century.

It is found in almost any body of water, but prefers a muddy bottom. It grows no more than 50 cm in length, the maximum weight is about 5 kg.

It lives in schools, is omnivorous, eats both algae and larvae, some anglers in the season even catch it on pieces of reeds.

Able to withstand large temperature fluctuations and low oxygen levels by simply burrowing into silt. There are several types of carp. The most common are silver and gold. They can peacefully exist in the same reservoir.

It feeds actively in the early morning and late evening. In the heat it becomes inert and goes to the depths or to the silt.

The same Chinese were actively engaged in breeding crucian carp, they managed to breed goldfish for keeping in aquariums. Lives up to 12 years.

Tench

The fish has a greenish color and is found in the same place as crucian carp and carp. The length rarely exceeds 40 cm, by weight it usually reaches 700 g. There is a case when one English fisherman caught an individual for 7 kg, but this fact raises great doubts among ichthyologists.

It feeds on algae and water lilies, so it likes to stand in places with dense vegetation. It can also eat animal protein foods, fry. Unlike crucian carp, tench is very cautious, it is difficult to catch him with a bait.

INTERESTING! In folk medicine, the mucus of this fish is believed to have antiseptic properties. It has been recorded how other fish, having received a wound, try to rub against the tench.

Most fish die from diseases and predators before reaching the age of 4 years. But if this milestone can be overcome, the tench lives up to 15 years.

Chub

A fish that prefers good currents and rocky bottoms. The chub does not like silt, mud, whirlpools and backwaters. Small individuals feed near the shore, grabbing insects that have fallen into the water, especially small dragonflies.

They try to catch almost everything that falls into the water near the shore. But if they notice a falling object somewhere in the middle of the river, they will definitely swim away.

Shyness is a distinctive feature of the chub, therefore, when he sees a person on the shore, he usually leaves, but not for long. These fish are also very curious. They will certainly come back to see if the fisherman has dropped anything in the water, and they are caught on that.

Large individuals move closer to the middle of the reservoir, but like to stay near the piles of bridges or near dams. The chub is an active predator, eating not only small fish, but also rodents swimming across the river. There are cases when he attacked a waterfowl. Lives 15-16 years.

Lives in almost all water bodies of Russia and Europe, avoiding only the southern regions and Yakutia. Very reminiscent of a roach, but the scales are much smaller, the eyes are pure yellow, without an orange tint. The average length of an adult is about 50 cm, and the weight is 1 kg. But meter-long specimens with a weight of more than 5 kg are also caught.

This fish is one of the few freshwater fish that can adapt to sea salt water and live in bays. On rivers, it prefers pits and clay bottoms.

Hunts in the currents. After rain, it often comes to the shore, looking for insects, larvae and worms washed away by water. He feeds on them, but adults chase juveniles and small frogs. Lives 15-20 years.

People call it grip. The asp is extremely active in search of food, which for him is small fish. Moreover, even fry that have not reached 1 cm can grab even smaller fish without fear.

The growth limit is 75–80 cm. With a weight of 3–4 kg, the asp behaves so arrogantly when hunting that it also attacks large roaches, but most often such an attack ends in failure - the asp has a small mouth. It lives only in flowing clean waters, stagnant water ignores. Lives up to 12 years.

Chekhon

The nimble fish is found in many reservoirs of Europe, prefers the basins of the Baltic, the Azov and Aral Seas, the Caspian.

It has a characteristic appearance - an absolutely straight back with a curved abdomen, for this feature it is also called a saber fish. It almost never occurs in shallow and narrow reservoirs; it loves space.

Food (insects, plankton, algae) is obtained during the day, and at night it rests on the bottom of the river. The size is 20-30 cm in length, weight is about 200 g. Trophy length is half a meter. Lives up to 10 years, but active growth stops in the first half of life.

rudd

It is very reminiscent of roach, and not only externally, but also habits, habitats, food. Often these species interbreed, it is difficult to determine their belonging to a particular group.

Rudd is a schooling fish that prefers to live in thickets of vegetation. It also eats, plant foods are quite suitable for it. However, in the spring before spawning and immediately after it, the fish are actively gaining calories.

The diet of the rudd can include not only larvae or bugs, but also small tadpoles. Weight rarely exceeds 2 kg. Life expectancy is 19-20 years. Long-livers have not been recorded.

In the 19th century, podust was very common in the waters of Russia. Now it is much less common due to the deterioration of the ecological situation and the mixing of species.

Usually grows up to 25-30 cm with a weight of 400-500 g. There are also kilogram trophies, in recent years less and less. And before, whole flocks of podusta accompanied barges with grain, from where it sometimes spilled out and served as food.

Podust lives only in clean water with a moderate current, so any pollution of the reservoir is detrimental to it. It feeds on green deposits on snags and piles, loves small algae. Life expectancy - up to 15 years.

Bleak

It is distributed almost everywhere in Europe. Nimble, gluttonous, constantly in motion. With a length of 20-25 cm, the weight rarely exceeds 50 g.

The size and mobility were appreciated by fishermen who catch predators on live bait. The bleak feeds on plant and animal food, often jumping out of the water, catching small insects. Lives 7-8 years, but often dies due to attacks by other fish.

One of the smallest Russian fish. The length does not exceed 10 cm, the maximum weight is 15 g. It resembles a bleak, but the head is noticeably wider.

Habits, habitats, even hunting for flying insects - everything is like a bleak. Life expectancy is 5-6 years.

Gudgeon

A common fish, but will never be found in dirty water and where there is industrial waste. It lives in flocks in flowing places with water saturated with oxygen.

For commercial purposes, minnows are not caught or bred. Its meat is tasty, especially when fried, but bony. Individuals of this species rarely grow in length more than 10-12 cm, so there is not much to eat there.

The gudgeon feeds on small midges and larvae. But predatory fish even of small sizes actively feast on them. Because of this, at a biologically possible age of 7-8 years, it rarely lives to 4.

It is found in the Amur and the nearest rivers of China and Russia, which flow into the Pacific Ocean.

In the 60s of the last century, fish was successfully bred in the European part of Russia, and now grass carp is found in the lower reaches of the Don and Volga. Length reaches 120 cm, weight can reach up to 40 kg. Despite its impressive size, it does not belong to predators, it feeds exclusively on plant foods.

Sometimes it even eats the shoots of plants hanging over the shore. It is actively bred in fish farms, not only for commercial purposes. The white carp is also called the water cow because of the ability to eat a large amount of bottom grass at a time. That's what they launch it for.

In this way, the bottom of the reservoirs, where other valuable fish are bred, is protected from overgrowth. Lives relatively long: 9-10 years.

silver carp

The silver carp is considered the same orderly of fish ponds. It cleans the bottom not only from vegetation, but also from the remains of animal origin - rotting larvae and mollusks.

The nutrition of the fish depends on its variety: the silver carp loves plant foods more, and the motley one (there are such individuals) feeds on phytoplankton.

It was originally bred in China. But then they began to spread in the rivers of Central Asia and Russia. Theoretically, silver carp can live in any fresh water body, as long as the water does not freeze in winter. With the onset of cold weather, it falls into suspended animation.

Adults can reach a weight of up to 50 kg. In good conditions in warm summer water can live up to 20 years.

Common catfish lives almost throughout Europe and is found even in the Arctic Ocean basin. This is an active predatory fish that feeds not only on neighboring freshwater fish (even pike), but also on frogs, small rodents that accidentally got into water bodies.

It usually lives in pits and whirlpools, from there it goes hunting. The average length of an adult is 1.5 m, weight up to 5 kg. There are also larger specimens. Catfish were caught and up to 4 m long, weighing up to 200 kg. The largest was caught in the Mekong River in Thailand. It weighed almost 30 kg with a length of about 5 m.

In the current rivers of Russia, where there are almost no large catfish, the average age of his life is about 30 years, but trophy specimens, which are sometimes caught from the Dnieper or Volga, are also centuries old.

channel catfish

This original type of catfish is found on the American continent. In Europe, including Russia, it is only taking root in fish farms. The average weight of such an individual is from 1 to 3 kg, growth can reach half a meter.

But there are larger sizes. The largest officially recorded channel catfish caught weighed over 25 kg. The average age is 8 years.

Acne

The river eel lives in freshwater rivers flowing into the seas. It resembles a snake, but it is not. The length of an adult is up to 2 m. The weight varies from 500 g to 5-6 kg, depending on age.

Likes reservoirs, the bottom of which is sandy or muddy. It usually hides there, waiting for prey. It can be not only small fish, shellfish or larvae, but even pike.

Upon reaching 8-10 years, the eel goes to the sea to spawn, lays eggs there and dies.

This fish is also very similar to a snake: it is able to have its habits. It is not uncommon for snakeheads to crawl from water to water over land, and cases have been recorded where this transition lasted about a week. All this time, snakeheads calmly do without an aquatic environment.

Mature representatives of the species grow up to a meter, and the weight can reach 10 kg. Initially, snake fish were found on the territory of Russia only in the Far East, but then they were relocated to the European and Asian part of the country, where they took root especially.

It feeds in the same way as an eel, on land it can grab a small rodent. Sometimes bred in aquariums. Life expectancy is 12-15 years.

Burbot

The only representative that lives in fresh water, but does not tolerate salt water. It begins to actively feed only in autumn, with the onset of cold weather. In the summer, it sharply reduces activity, and when the water temperature is above 30 degrees, it dies altogether.

Feeds on small crustaceans and fish. It is not possible for him to hunt on an open surface, he prefers to look for prey in the water column.

Its habitat is pits, burrowed places. From there, it attacks its prey. Sometimes it is confused with catfish, but their seasonal habits are completely different, besides, burbot does not grow to the large sizes that catfish can achieve.

The maximum length that an adult burbot reaches is 1.2 m, and its weight is about 20 kg. In good conditions, burbots live up to 25 years.

Loach

Freshwater fish. If most of the inhabitants of reservoirs prefer clean running water, loach fish, on the contrary, consider swampy and silty places to be their native place. It happens that where it is found, not a single fish is found anymore.

But this loach does not worry much: it can eat larvae, mollusks and even ants if the reservoir suddenly dries up for a while. Then the loach simply burrows into the mud and waits for water to appear.

Its dimensions are small. Average specimens do not grow longer than 25-16 cm. But there are also 30-centimeter individuals. Depending on living conditions and nutrition, loaches live in nature from 6 to 8 years.

Char

The fish calmly tolerates low water temperatures, so its habitats are the reservoirs of the following regions:

• coast of the Kola Peninsula;
• in the basin of Lake Baikal;
• in the Pacific Ocean;
• in the lakes of Western Siberia.

It has several subspecies, the characteristics of which are similar:

• the length of individuals reaches 25 cm;
• weight - up to 1.5 kg.

The diet is animal protein food. Life expectancy - up to 7 years.

Ichthyologists consider this fish-like animal. It resembles a snake, more precisely a large leech. Instead of a mouth, she has a sucker with teeth, with the help of which she bites into the body of a prey fish and feeds on her blood.

The length of an adult is 30 cm. It lives in rivers and lakes in the Danube region. Life expectancy is not more than 2 years.

Lamprey Ukrainian

This type of lamprey is slightly smaller - no more than 20 cm. But it is more widespread: in the basins of the Baltic, Black, Caspian and Azov seas. It can be found on the Dniester, Dnieper, in the waters of the Kuban and the Don. Lives up to a year. Listed in the Red Book of Ukraine.

During the time of Tsarist Russia, the sterlet population on the Volga was high, but then, with a change in the ecological situation, the number of fish dropped sharply. Today, thanks to protective measures, the number of sterlet in large reservoirs of Russia is increasing, including in Siberian rivers.

The size of well-developed individuals can reach 1.5 m with 15 kg of weight.

The fish is sociable, pairs rarely separate, and hibernate in groups, huddled together in deep pits. During this period they do not eat, and in the warm season their diet is plankton and caviar of other fish. Developed individuals live up to 25 years, sometimes up to 30.

Danube salmon

Originally lived in the Danube basin, but then managed to move it to other rivers in Europe and even Morocco. Adults grow up to 1.75 m, gaining a weight of 60 kg. Such salmon lives up to 20 years, preferring a solitary stay in a separate territory.

Brook trout

It lives in Western Europe, from Murmansk to the Mediterranean. Found in the Balkans and Asia Minor. It is caught in the basins of the Baltic, Black, Aral and Azov seas. There are no such trout in the waters of the Far East.

The length of sexually mature specimens reaches 50 cm, and weight - up to 2 kg. The age limit is 12 years old. During this time, trout can gain weight several times more.

This small fish resembles a decorative one. Males, having reached adulthood, grow up to 12 cm. Females are slightly longer - they can stretch up to 15 cm.

It lives in the basins of the Dnieper and Dniester, in wetlands and estuaries. It is difficult to tolerate clean water. It feeds on larvae, worms and other protein animal food. But many predators also feed on umber, so she often has to hide under water at the bottom.

There it can stay for a long time due to the special oxygen bubble. Males of this species live up to 3 years, females - up to 5.

grayling european

There are 3 types of grayling in the world: European, Siberian and Mongolian. The European is the most numerous. The size and duration of its life is highly dependent on habitat conditions.

In difficult conditions, grayling by the age of 7 reaches only 1 kg, in medium - 3.5 kg, in favorable - 5-6 kg. In length, individuals can grow up to 50 cm.

Carp

Listed in the Red Book of Russia. It lives in the basins of the Azov and Black Seas. Sometimes observed in the Terek and in the lower part of the Don. The trunk in the form of a bar reaches 75 cm in length. The average age is up to 12 years. It has great culinary value due to the special taste of meat.

Other types of freshwater fish

Other inhabitants of the reservoirs are also of value.

• Baikal sturgeon;
• lenok;
• taimen ordinary;
• omul;
• palia.

Pond:

• minnow;
• Rainbow trout.

Mountain rivers:

• pied;
• mountain trout;
• Siberian grayling.

Among the fish there are champions in size, weight and behavior.

The largest freshwaters include:

• shilbovy catfish: with growth up to 3 m, it is able to grow up to 200 kg and more;
• Mississippian shell: with the same height, it reaches 130 kg;
• giant freshwater stingray: weighs up to 600 kg;
• Chinese paddlefish: weight can reach 300 kg.

In 2005, a giant catfish was caught in the Mekong. Its length reached 2.7 m, weight - 273 kg. This is the largest fish caught by man.

According to many famous chefs, the top three most delicious river fish are sterlet, salmon and trout. Some prefer carp.

The basis of nutrition of river and lake fish is vegetation, insects, larvae, beetles, crustaceans and molluscs. Many fish eat the eggs of other specimens.

Predatory individuals feed on fry of other inhabitants of the reservoir and smaller fish.

Predatory river fish include:

• pike;
• burbot.

Perch can also be added here, but it does not hunt all fish, only small and inactive ones.

The freshwater world is no less diverse than the marine one. But man, with his industrial activity, often pollutes fresh water bodies, destroying their inhabitants as well. You should constantly remember this. What kind of fish do you like to eat? Share interesting fishing stories in the comments.