Who lives in the pond? Description of the small fish Verkhovka (verkhovka) and its fishing What we will build from

Keeping fish from local waters

Can I use well or spring water? Usually, a significant amount of mineral salts and other substances are dissolved in the water of these sources. Therefore, before using this water, its properties are checked. How do they do this? IN glass jar(or some other glass container) the water settles for three to four days. Then it is thoroughly purged. A control fish is placed in a vessel with test water and observed for several days. If she feels normal, then the water is suitable for keeping fish. The water temperature in an aquarium with fish from local reservoirs should be plus 15-18 ° C, that is, significantly lower than for exotic ones. Water hardness and pH values ​​are the same as for aquariums with exotic fish. The methods for preparing water are also the same. What local fish can be stocked in an aquarium? Crucian carp, carp or bred from it various breeds carp, bitterling, silverback, loach, tench, rudd, fry of a number of other local fish - as you can see, there is a considerable choice.

When populating an aquarium, it should be taken into account that the most viable fish in its conditions are those from stagnant lakes, ponds or reservoirs with a weak current. In addition, it must be borne in mind that fish caught in the fall are hardier than fish caught in spring or summer: the latter are less able to tolerate sudden temperature fluctuations. Most of our local fish are more durable than exotic fish. So, for example, carp lives about 40 years, other carp - 10-15 years. Keeping fish from local reservoirs is also interesting because they are attractive for their appearance, habits and other characteristics. When populating an aquarium, you must remember that you cannot place predatory and “peaceful” fish together. Predatory fish are considered to be those that feed on live fish. Peaceful fish feed on invertebrate animals or plants.

Predatory species include: pike, perch, pike perch, catfish, burbot. Among the peaceful ones are bream, roach, rudd, ide, verkhovka, bitterling, loach, crucian carp, carp and others. The most common inhabitant of stagnant waters of local reservoirs is crucian carp. This is where we begin our story. Crucian carp. There are two types of crucian carp: common (golden) with golden scales and silver, whose scales are silver. Crucian carp is a bottom fish and feeds on bloodworms, algae, and small mollusks; It is very unpretentious, which is explained by the difficult conditions of its life in natural reservoirs. Muddy reservoirs, the bottom of which is covered with silt, and coastal thickets of marshy reservoirs are favorite places for crucian carp. Here it grows, reproduces, and feels great.

In some reservoirs, the weight of crucian carp reaches 500-600 g. But more often its weight is 150-200 g. In an aquarium, you should not get carried away with the size of the fish. On the contrary, we must try to keep it smaller. However, there is no reason to fear that crucian carp will grow significantly in a medium-sized aquarium. In aquarium conditions their weight will not exceed 100 g. Gorchak. Found mainly in weakly flowing waters. Interesting fish, silvery-green in color with large scales, an oval, zigzag body, a high back and slightly compressed sides. It has long been noticed that where they are found bivalves pearl barley and toothless, you can also find bitterling. This is due to mutual interest. The relationships between these animal species were discovered more than a hundred years ago by Kharkov University professor A.F. Maslovsky.

When you look at the mirror surface of the river in summer, it’s easy to notice small and playful silver fish. This is the Verkhovka. They are called so because they float near the surface of the water. It is not difficult to keep verkhovok in an aquarium, as they are unpretentious. Greenish-yellow, as if covered with a fine mesh, the scales of the apex shine and sparkle with every rapid movement of the fish. Verkhovkas must be placed in schools in the aquarium, since these fish cannot tolerate loneliness. It should be remembered that the aquarium in which verkhovkas live is usually only half filled with water and carefully covered with glass. The fact is that on warm moonlit nights the Verkhovs start up on the river fun game: they quickly jump out of the water and, flashing with silver scales, dive into the water again. Fish do not give up these habits even in an aquarium. No matter how high it is, they jump out of it and, falling to the floor, die. Therefore, it is recommended to fill the aquarium only halfway with water and cover it with glass.

The water in the aquarium should be clean, transparent and well aerated. Tench. The tench has a different character. In contrast to the Verkhovka, he prefers solitude. It got its name from amazing properties change your color. When taken out of the water, it becomes covered with dark spots. The greenish-yellow color of the tench with a golden tint is lighter than clearer water in aquarium. Lazy and slow in its movements, the tench is a homebody. Once he has chosen a corner for himself, he does not want to leave it. It is very interesting to watch his habits. With the onset of cold weather, tench begin to look for company, and fish gather in schools. Roach, Silvery-white with a pinkish tint, the roach is distinguished by the difference in the color of its fins: the dorsal and caudal fins are greenish-pink, and the pectoral fins are light yellow or orange. Roach loves long journeys across expanses of water. Being deprived of this opportunity in an aquarium, she still feels good in it.

She should be kept until she matures. Sticklebacks. These fish are so named because their front dorsal fin is transformed into sharp spines: three for the three-spined stickleback and 7-12 for the nine-spined stickleback. The stickleback is remarkable not only for its appearance, but also for its habits and way of life. These fish are found in the basins of the Black, Azov and northern seas, in rivers and lakes Leningrad region and in other bodies of water. Sticklebacks love quiet current and are found in both fresh and brackish water. During spawning, the sides and abdomen of males become thick, black, and the abdominal spines become snow-white. Stickleback is especially interesting during the spawning period.

In the spring - in April or early May - male sticklebacks take on a brighter, mating color: the abdomen becomes bright red and the back green. They move away from their plump friends, who swim in flocks. Each male chooses a place to build a nest. He usually finds it at the bottom or among plants. Most often, he digs a hole in the mud and strengthens it. Sticklebacks especially love thickets of water lilies. Tearing off pieces from them, the male skillfully lines the side walls, and then the roof of the nest, gluing “ construction material» mucus secreted by his body. The most interesting thing is that, having built a nest, the male carefully smoothes, levels, and preens it, throwing out the excess and expanding the entrance hole.

The posterior opening remains narrow and sometimes completely absent. The finished nest of the three-spined stickleback is a ball, which is not easy to notice in the water. Built from and attached to plants, the nest blends into the overall green background. When the nest is ready, the male returns to the flock to select a mate ready to lay eggs. While playing with her, he drives the female into the nest. The female swims into the entrance hole, lays a few eggs and swims out through the rear hole. At this time, the male is in an extremely excited state. As soon as the female finishes spawning, he, in turn, swims into the nest and pours milk on the eggs. But the male does not rest on this. Soon he brings another girlfriend to the nest, then a third. This is repeated until the nest is filled with eggs. However, the troubles of a caring male do not end there. He vigilantly guards his nest, jealously protecting it from enemies. This continues for 10-15 days. At this time, the male works selflessly: by swinging his fins, he creates water movement in front of the entrance hole of the nest, thereby ensuring ventilation and water circulation. After a few days, stickleback fry begin to emerge from the nest.

In the first days, the father allows the babies to move away from the nest and watches them vigilantly. Only after making sure that the fry have become independent, he stops guarding and leaves his “post”. It should be borne in mind that sticklebacks require a spacious aquarium with a thick layer of sand on the bottom and plants: water lilies, egg capsules and others. Sexual maturity in sticklebacks occurs in the second year. Sticklebacks are extremely voracious. As soon as you give them food, they race towards it, often injuring each other in the fight for the tidbit. It is not recommended to place sticklebacks in a common aquarium with other fish. To prevent sticklebacks from getting fungal diseases, you must add table salt to the water (a tablespoon of salt per 8 buckets of water). And, of course, you need to make sure that the aquarium is always clean.

Gudgeon.
Who doesn’t know this modest-looking fish with large scales and short antennae on a thick head? Resting on the bottom with its elastic fins, the gudgeon lies motionless at night and in hot weather. summer days. For hours he can lie quietly, without moving, in a secluded place in the river. The gudgeon usually lives in reservoirs with sandy soil. The body of the fish is elongated, greenish-brown, and sometimes yellow. The whiskers are the gudgeon's organ of touch. It is unpretentious and willingly eats leftovers from the dinner of other fish. In the aquarium, the gudgeon is a diligent orderly.

The gudgeon should be fed with live food: daphnia, cyclops, tubifex. This fish eats little in the aquarium. This is apparently explained by the fact that it is difficult for the gudgeon to immediately acclimatize to a new environment. The second reason is the timidity of the fish. Therefore, silence should be maintained when feeding and caring for the gudgeon. You can catch a gudgeon like this: put a piece of bread in an empty liter milk bottle and lower it to the bottom of the stream with the flow. In search of food, the gudgeon goes against the current. Smelling the smell of bread, he swims into the bottle. And then all that remains is to pull out the bottle by the rope.

If you look closely at the bottom of a fast small river, you can see schools of small, inconspicuous gray fish. Try to catch a few pieces and look at them already in a glass jar. They are transformed: their scales shine different colors, shine. The fish are getting better. In spring, when nature puts on its rich attire, the minnow is also very beautiful. Along the black stripe running across his entire body, specks and dots shimmering with mother-of-pearl are scattered like buttons. The minnow's mouth, gill covers and belly are crimson-red. On the sides of his head there are round balls and dots cast in silver. This is the spring outfit of the minnow.

At aquarium maintenance minnows, you must keep in mind that at first, while they get used to new living conditions, it is recommended to clean and change the water daily. First, a quarter of the water is changed, after a couple of days - the eighth. Later, when the minnows have acclimatized, you can change the water less frequently. Rudd. This fish got its name from its crimson-red fins. An inhabitant of flowing reservoirs densely overgrown with aquatic plants, the rudd is unpretentious and takes root well in an aquarium. This beautiful, active and cheerful fish loves river backwaters, where it can hide for hours in dense underwater thickets. In the aquarium, the rudd diversifies the fish community with its colorful outfit. The male is especially beautiful during the spawning period. Granular spots appear on his head - warts, colorfully and brightly colored. Rudds should be fed live food.

To breed them, you need an aquarium densely planted with myriophyllum, which is necessary for spawning. After its completion, the producers must be removed from the spawning area. After 7-8 days, larvae appear and hang in a vertical position, glued to plants or ledges of the aquarium. It takes only one to two days for the fry to learn to swim independently. In a cheerful flock, they swim briskly around the aquarium, catching ciliates and other small live food. We have already talked about how important it is to position the aquarium correctly. This is of particular importance when we're talking about about the content of fish in local reservoirs. It should be remembered that they, unlike exotic fish, cannot tolerate high temperature. Therefore, we must try to create conditions for them in the aquarium that are perhaps close to natural.

In order to prevent them from hibernating in winter (as happens in natural conditions), it is necessary that the aquarium has summer conditions throughout the year. And, of course, we cannot forget about plants. Underwater vegetable world Our local water bodies are so rich and varied that there is no need to look for plants outside.

Water lily.
Who doesn’t know her, a beauty with silver-white fragrant flowers floating on the surface of ponds or river creeks? The leaves immersed in water have a golden purple hue. In the aquarium, the water lily feels good all winter. However, before planting it in the ground, it must be thoroughly washed, rotten leaves removed and the roots trimmed shorter. When favorable conditions are created in the aquarium, the water lily grows quickly and finally blooms with magnificent flowers. As observations have shown, water lilies grown from seeds in an aquarium take root better.

The egg capsule is undersized.
This is a relative of the water lily. It is distinguished by large leaves, which vary from each other in shape and location. Leaves grow from the creeping rhizome of the egg capsule. Some of them are heart-shaped, others are round, almost transparent, light green, and live in the water column. When the aquarium is sufficiently lit, the egg capsule grows well and even blooms with yellow flowers, similar to a large buttercup. Egg capsule seeds, like water lilies, should be collected in the fall. Duckweed. This plant is usually introduced into the aquarium with live food or other plants. Green round plates of duckweed gradually fill the entire surface of the water in the aquarium.

In our reservoirs there are: small, three-lobed and multi-rooted duckweed. One or more thin roots extend from the underside of its plates. Duckweed is an unpretentious plant. It reproduces very intensively in overhead light. In small quantities, duckweed is not harmful to an aquarium.

In winter, many plants in local water bodies die off. Duckweed does not die. However, in winter it develops only with additional artificial lighting. Topnyak. This plant gets its name from the marshy swamps in which it is found. It is of great interest for observing the movement of juice. The thin, glass-like, cranked stems of the tortoise are completely devoid of leaves. Only at the junctions of the knees do bunches of twigs grow, enveloping the stems of the plant as if in a ring.

In an aquarium, the topnyak is very effective and useful because it actively participates in the biological processing of water, creating a favorable environment for its inhabitants. IN winter cold, when many plants die, the marsh grass still retains its bright green color. Stomach grass reproduces very quickly. One has only to throw a branch of it into the water and it begins to grow and develop. Special conditions For this, a stamper is not required. The only thing he can't stand is transplants. Therefore, once you have placed the stomper in the aquarium, you should not disturb it anymore.

Hornwort.
The leaves of this aquatic plant, due to their large dissection, have the property of purifying water. Dirty settles on the leaves. Worth putting in muddy water a few sprigs of hornwort, in a few hours it will become transparent and clean. But before introducing hornwort into the aquarium, you must thoroughly rinse the plant with running water. It is best to plant it in summer. This plant got its name from its horn-like leaves. Collected in dense bunches (whorls), they sit on the stem at equal distances from each other. The hard, short-serrated, fork-shaped bright green leaves of the hornwort are immersed in the water column and only their upper bunch, in the form of a crown, barely peeks out above the water.

If you look closely at the hornwort, you will notice that its leaves are inflated with a tube. There is air in them. In order for the hornwort to develop and grow well in the aquarium, it is necessary, as soon as it grows to the surface of the water, to cut it from below and deepen it into the ground so that the top of the hornwort does not touch the top layer of water. In addition, it is recommended to change the water less frequently and keep the hornwort away from the light source. Local choice aquatic plants V summer time quite large and varied. Unfortunately, many of them die off with the onset of winter, leaving behind seeds or buds. That is why plants such as tremulous grass, hornwort, and often hornwort, as well as other plants that continue to live and develop normally in winter in an aquarium, are especially valuable. Hornwort is an extremely useful plant not only for aquariums with inhabitants from local reservoirs. It also serves for spawning many exotic fish.

Bleak -Alburnus lucidus Heck

Bleak is one of the most common and well-known fish in the CIS, found almost everywhere. The body of the bleak is elongated, thin, covered with large steel-colored scales sparkling in the sun. The back is darker, gray-blue with a greenish tint, the sides and belly are silvery with a strong metallic sheen. The upper and lower fins of the bleak are dirty yellowish in color. The scales are very delicate and sit very loosely on the body, so they fall off at the slightest touch.

Bleak lives in almost all large and small rivers; it also inhabits flowing ponds and lakes with clear clear water and sandy bottom. The bleak is extremely careful. For most of the year, bleak swims in schools at the surface of the water, and it stays at depth only in winter. Their favorite habitat is quiet, deep waters, and only occasionally it is caught on shallow riffles. Extremely lively and very agile, it is constantly on the move and scurries back and forth near the surface, looking for prey. She greedily rushes after a small midge or worm floating by. In warm weather summer evenings, immediately after sunset, when clouds of mosquitoes and midges crowd just above the water, the bleaks come to strong excitement. Keeping in flocks, they then rush after swarms of mosquito mosquitoes and, jumping out of the water one after another, try to knock down the closest insects with splashes of water in order to refresh themselves. And a mosquito, once in the water, immediately becomes their easy prey.

Bleak matures quickly and begins to reproduce in the second year of life. Bleak usually begins spawning in mid-May and continues almost until the end of June. The bleak lays its eggs in shallow water on grass, tree branches or stones located near the very banks of a river or lake. The eggs are very small and numerous, and juveniles soon emerge from them.

In France, bleak scales are used to prepare the so-called oriental essence (Essence d’Orient), which is used to tint artificial pearls. The recipe for preparing this essence was invented back in the century before last, and since then it has been increasingly improved.

Currently, the preparation of oriental essence is carried out as follows. The scraped scales of the bleak are placed in water and stirred until there is no silver pigment left on it, which separates in the form of crystalline particles and settles to the bottom. Then all the scales are removed from the container, and a silvery sediment remains at the bottom of the vessel. This silvery liquid, after purification from impurities, is the famous Essence d’Orient.

To prepare pearls, take small blown glass balls and carefully add essence, drop by drop, through the holes, which, adhering to their inner surface, gives them the appearance of pearls. How irregular shape these balls, the more they resemble real pearls, and they can be distinguished from real ones only by their weight. To obtain a pound of such essence you need 4 pounds of scales, which requires no more or less than 15,000 bleaks.

The dream of every fisherman, regardless of experience and skills, is to catch a trophy fish, which he can show off to his less fortunate colleagues and show off his skills to his family, who consider fishing a thankless task. When setting out for the desired prey, do not forget that the result depends entirely not on the fisherman’s happiness, but on the bait -. You can catch little ones in the nearest body of water, because there are a lot of tiny fish in the ichthyofauna. Catching a topwater is an easy and necessary activity; this little one will serve as an excellent bait for more valuable specimens.

The carp family is distinguished not only by giant fish, but also by tiny fish, which include the verkhovka. Like elder sister, the verkhovka looks quite ordinary - it has a short body with a copper tint and a head that resembles a small cone. The baby's remarkable eyes are large, with a beautiful greenish tint. Another name for verkhovka fish is verkhovka, and among older generations of fishermen there is even the name verkhovka (this is probably due to the fact that the crumbs like to swim near the very surface of the water surface).

The top melting fish and the bleak, whose body structure is almost no different from it, can boast of one more common feature– size. A fish that has reached ten centimeters in length can be considered a trophy specimen, because such crumbs are very rare. Maximum weight – 10 grams. This differs from bleak - the latter, with such a length, can have a body weight of up to 20 grams.

Photo 1. Verkhovka on top, bleak below.

The baby sisters also differ in their vertical stripe - in the top melt it is more clearly defined than in the bleak. The list of differences continues with the dark humps on the heads of male verkhovkas, which appear during mating games. There is also a difference in age - the perch rarely lives up to four years, and the lifespan of the bleak is at least five. If you look for differences in cleaning fish, you will practically not find them - both have almost no scales.

The fish is found in both large and small reservoirs throughout Europe. In Russia, large schools of whitefish and bleak can be seen in the Northern Dvina, Volga, and rivers of the Caucasus. The basins of the Caspian and Black Seas are also inhabited by Verkhovka.

Baby fish: behavioral characteristics, diet, reproduction

Unlike many inhabitants of reservoirs, the fish prefers to lead a sedentary lifestyle and not go on long journeys. Rivers in which there is a weak current are a favorite refuge for both the high water and its sister, the bleak. Verkhovka is also found in small ponds and flooded quarries; the fish thrives in reservoirs with a muddy bottom.

The common verkhovka loves warmth and comfort, and in summer months, especially in June, on open places you can see huge flocks of babies. Fishing will be no less fruitful until the very end of July, only just before the beginning of autumn the crumbs will begin to descend to greater depths in search of cozy corners. If you are not too lazy, you can stock up on perennial water for a long time, because it also feels great in an aquarium, which can be built from an ordinary jar.

Despite its tiny size, the fish can be considered a rather aggressive aquatic inhabitant that will not disdain any food:

• crustaceans;
• rotifers;
• insect larvae;
• small bugs;
• fish fry;
• caviar.

Interesting! At the age of two years, the perch is completely ready for reproduction, and spawning occurs over several months, in portions. It is noteworthy that the spawning itself begins, when the babies gather in huge flocks of several thousand individuals. The schools draw beautiful patterns, moving chaotically near the surface.

Photo 2. Fish in a jar.

When choosing a place for spawning, the fish do not go overboard, the main thing is that the surface to which the eggs will attach is hard. It could be a stone, a board, even a stick, driftwood or your float. You can often find caviar, to which a masonry of verkhovka is modestly attached.

At one time, the female can spawn up to five thousand eggs, no larger than a poppy seed. Within a week or a week and a half, the babies appear and immediately go in search of food.

Fishing for topwater - how to catch a baby

Catching verkhovka usually occurs using nets or homemade spiders.

Photo 3. Spider made of mesh.

How does fishing work? There are several tricks that will help you stock up on a considerable amount of small fish:

1. The mesh of the net must be very thick, otherwise the nimble kids will easily run away.
2. An excellent tackle for catching perched water can be made from gauze; you can build one in a few minutes right at the place where you will be fishing.
3. To collect as many crumbs as possible, just stir up the water well - curious fish will certainly rush in to check who dared to do this outrage.
4. With a little skill, you can catch several dozen individuals, so it is better to keep a container near you into which you can immediately send the caught prey.

Live bait from spring water is irreplaceable when hunting major representatives perches. Don’t despair that you won’t be able to get hold of crumbs in winter, because you can use a winter fishing rod to catch them. Perfect option- light tackle made by hand. If you have experience in building a filly, then there will be no difficulties here - the tackle for the top is only slightly smaller in size.

Photo 4. Rolled oatmeal bait.

Photo 5. In the process of fishing.

You can also catch baby fish with a nodding rod, but this requires considerable skill. What are the top leaders going for? Preference should be given to light-colored baits:

• small burdock;
• larvae;

Important! The fish will peck much more actively if bait has been used. The mixture should be nutritious and dissolve well in water. Most often these are ingredients of plant origin and attractants, which are usually used when preparing bait for carp. It’s great if the mixture dissolves in water and creates a cloudy effect - this will attract large schools of fish.

The redfish is a rather interesting fish, and you should not think that catching it will not be difficult. Often you will have to use a lot of skills to get your hands on nimble babies that will serve as excellent live bait. Taking into account the characteristics and habits of the fish, choosing the right tackle and showing a little patience, you can stock up on appetizing bait for large representatives of reservoirs for a long time.

We have heard more than once from rural residents visiting the aquarium of the Kharkov Zoo that keeping an aquarium is, of course, very interesting, but in the city it is easier. There are all conditions for an amateur aquarist. But in rural areas this is almost impossible: there is nowhere to buy an aquarium, much less fish and aquatic plants.

We think that this is not the case at all, and we will try to prove that in the villages it is also possible to successfully keep fish in aquariums.

We have already said above that it is not difficult to make an aquarium yourself. We believe that in rural conditions this is not a problem. Metal, glass, putty can be purchased. Aeration and lighting of the aquarium can also be equipped. Now all our villages are electrified. As for purchasing exotic fish, you really need to go to a pet store in the city to get them. But it is not at all necessary to keep exotic fish. It is no less interesting to populate the aquarium with fish and plants from local reservoirs. Both of them take root well in a home aquarium, and caring for them is easy. The main problem for the rural aquarist is water. Not all well or spring water is suitable for keeping aquarium fish. It is best to take water from the reservoir where the fish and plants came from. Moreover, it is recommended to draw water carefully, without raising turbidity from the bottom. Then the water should settle well for 3-4 days, after which it should be aerated.

We are often asked the question: is it possible to use well or spring water?

Typically, water from these sources contains a significant amount of mineral salts and therefore, before filling the aquarium, it is necessary to check the properties of this water. To do this, you need to add thoroughly washed soil into a glass vessel with settled well or spring water and plant aquatic plants in it. Most often, on the first day the water in the aquarium will become cloudy. However, after 2-3 days it will become transparent and clean. If the plants in the aquarium feel good, then we can assume that the fish will also feel good in it. If the experiment was unsuccessful, the water was not purified, and water appeared on the plants and glass. white coating and sediment, this means that the water hardness is high and needs to be reduced. To do this, the water must be boiled for an hour. Then let it settle, and only after that carefully pour 3/4 of the volume of settled water into the aquarium.

You can also soften well or spring water by adding about a small portion of rain or snow water to it.

The water temperature for keeping fish from local reservoirs should be 17-20 °C. If the water temperature rises above 20°, then 1/4 of the volume of fresh, cold, settled water can be added to it.

When populating an aquarium with fish from local bodies of water, it should be taken into account that the most viable fish are from slow-flowing ponds and lakes or reservoirs with a slow flow. It is best to populate an aquarium with fry. The choice of fish here is quite wide. In the aquarium you can keep young crucian carp, perches, tops, bitterlings, rudd, tenches, loaches, minnows and juveniles of other fish.

When populating an aquarium, you must remember that placing predatory and peaceful fish cannot be together: pike, perch, pike perch, catfish, burbot are predators. Peaceful fish include: bream, roach, rudd, ide, verkhovka, bitterling, loach, crucian carp, carp.

The most common inhabitant of local standing waters is crucian carp.

Genus of crucian carp. Fishes of this genus are characterized by a long dorsal fin The dorsal and anal fins of the fish have a spiny ray. The pharyngeal teeth are single-rowed. There are no antennae on the upper jaw.

Golden carp. Distributed in reservoirs of the European part of the USSR, in lakes and rivers of Siberia. Lives in swampy and overgrown reservoirs, in floodplains of lakes, in areas with slow flows and muddy soil.

The length of the fish reaches 45 cm, and in the aquarium it is much smaller.

Crucian carp spawns at temperatures not lower than 14°. The eggs are spawned onto the plants.

Crucian carp is an unpretentious fish. Juveniles feed on zooplankton, and adult fish feed on various live food, small mollusks and plants.

Genus bitterlings. Common bitterweed. This is a silver-green fish with large scales, a high back and an oval body.

Gorchak is widespread in the European part of the USSR. Prefers slow flowing and standing waters. The length of the fish is up to 10 cm.

IN mating season The male bitterling becomes unrecognizable and is very reminiscent of the fire barb with a pinkish color.

At this time, as soon as a mating pair of bitterlings notices the toothless one, they begin to fuss, swim around it impatiently, and the female tries in every possible way to get her long ovipositor into the slightly open valves of the toothless one. Helping her, the male taps on the shell of the mollusk, as if asking: “Open, please!”...

And a miracle happens. The stubborn and timid toothless mollusk hospitably opens its valves so that the female bitterling can lay eggs in the folds of its mantle, which are immediately fertilized by the male.

This mutual assistance of bitterling and toothless was established about a hundred years ago by Kharkov University professor A.F. Maslovsky.

Verkhovka family.Verkhovka. When you look at the mirror of the river, you can see small, cheerful silver fish. This is the Verkhovka. They are named so because they usually swim near the surface of the water.

Verkhovkas should be placed in the aquarium in a group. The aquarium in which the verkhovok is kept must be filled only half with water and covered with glass. The fact is that on moonlit summer nights the top women start a game on the river: they jump out of the water and dive in again. Verkhovkas do not give up this “habit” even in an aquarium, so even from a high aquarium, fish jump out and die.

The water in the aquarium should be clean, transparent and oxygenated.

Tench. Large fish, up to 60 cm in size. The body is high with a wide back. The aquarium usually contains young fish, no more than 15-20 cm long. In contrast to the verkhovka, tench prefers privacy. It got its name from the amazing property of changing its color, as if molting.

Its greenish-yellow color with a golden tint becomes lighter, the clearer the water in the aquarium. When taken out of the water, the tench becomes covered with dark spots. He is very slow and a big homebody. Having chosen a corner for himself, he stubbornly strives not to leave it. With the onset of cold weather, tenches gather in flocks.

These interesting fish are common in the basins of the White, Baltic, Barents and Black Seas, as well as Lakes Ladoga and Onega. The relatively tall body of the fish is laterally compressed. The caudal peduncle is short. There are three or four spines in front of the dorsal fin. Ventral, fins also in the form of spines. The length of the stickleback is 5-7 cm. In winter, the body of the fish is silver-white, the upper part of the head and back are blue. In summer the blue color is replaced dark gray. During spawning, the males' eyes turn bright blue. The lower part of the head and abdomen are red. Females have dark transverse diamond-shaped spots on their backs, and the lateral surface of the body is copper-yellow.

Sticklebacks are marine fish, but they can also live in fresh water. They are remarkable not only for their appearance, but also for their interesting habits. This is especially evident during the spawning period.

In April or early May, males choose a place to build a nest. This usually happens at the bottom of a reservoir among plants. Most often, the male digs a nest in the mud and strengthens it. Among plants, sticklebacks prefer thickets of water lilies. Tearing off pieces of their leaves, the male skillfully lines the side walls and then the roof of the nest, gluing this “building material” with the mucus he secretes. Upon completion of the construction of the nest, the male carefully smoothes, levels and preens it, throwing out everything unnecessary.

The nest of the three-spined stickleback is a ball, which is not easy to notice in the water, since it blends in with the green background of aquatic plants. When the nest is ready, the male returns to his flock, selects a female ready to lay eggs and, playing with her, drives her into the nest, where she spawns several eggs. As soon as the female finishes spawning, the male swims into the nest and pours milk on the eggs. Then he invites the next female into the nest, followed by a third, a fourth, until the nest is filled with eggs. But that's all the trouble caring father don't end. The male vigilantly and jealously guards the nest. This continues for 10-15 days. At this time, the male works selflessly. By moving its fins, it creates movement of water in front of the nest, thereby ensuring its circulation. After a few days, the fry emerge from the nest. In the first days, the father vigilantly ensures that they do not move away from the nest. When the juveniles become stronger, the male ceases guardianship and leaves his “post.”

It should be borne in mind that to keep sticklebacks you need a spacious aquarium with a thick layer of sand on the bottom and plants: water lilies, egg capsules and others.

Sexual maturity in sticklebacks occurs in the second year of life.

These fish are very voracious. As soon as you give them food, they instantly rush to it, often injuring each other in the fight for the tidbit.

It is not recommended to place sticklebacks in a community aquarium. To prevent them from getting fungal diseases, you must add table salt to the water (at the rate of one tablespoon of salt per eight buckets of water) and, of course, make sure that the aquarium is always clean.

In addition to three-spined sticklebacks, there are other types of sticklebacks:

marine longsnout- in front of the dorsal fin it has 14-16 spines;

nine-needle (small)- has 6-12 spines in front of the dorsal fin;

small southern- there are bone plates on the body.

Distributed in rivers of the European part of the USSR. His back is greenish-brown, side surfaces bodies are silvery, covered with dark bluish spots. The abdomen is silvery, slightly yellow. Dorsal and caudal fins with dark spots. The remaining fins are gray. The body length of the gudgeon is 10-12 cm.

This is how you can catch minnows. Place a piece of bread in an empty milk bottle and, tying a long rope to the neck of the bottle, lower the bottle to the bottom of the reservoir with the flow. In search of food, the gudgeon swims against the current. Smelling the smell of bread, he swims into the bottle. All that remains is to use a rope to pull out the bottle with the minnow.

Minnow. Distributed in almost all rivers Soviet Union. The color of the fish is variegated. On the sides there are large spots of vague outlines. The lateral line is incomplete or discontinuous. There are no scales on the abdomen.

During spawning, males' spots become brighter. The corners of the mouth become crimson, and the abdomen turns red. The ventral and anal fins are white. The length of the fish is 10-12 cm.

Minnow - the fish is unpretentious to food, easily adapts to aquarium conditions. It should be fed with flies, bloodworms and earthworms. Minnows are caught in the same way as gudgeons.

This fish got its name thanks to its bright red fins. An inhabitant of flowing reservoirs densely overgrown with aquatic plants, the rudd is unpretentious and easily adapts to living conditions in an aquarium. This beautiful and active fish loves river backwaters. It is very impressive in an aquarium.

The male is especially beautiful during the spawning period. Bright multi-colored spots appear on his head.

Rudds should be fed live food. To breed them, you need an aquarium densely planted with myriophyllum (pinnate). After spawning, the spawners must be removed from the spawning area. After 7-8 days, larvae appear and hang vertically glued to plants or ledges of the aquarium. After another 1-2 days, the larvae turn into fry, which swim in a cheerful flock, eating small zooplankton.

Bleak. This small silvery fish is widespread in the slow-moving waters of the European part of the USSR. Bleak belongs to the carp family, but differs from its other representatives by the presence of a keel, on which there are no scales from the anus to the ventral fin. Just like the verkhovka, the bleak jumps out of the water, but does this not out of agility, but in pursuit of a swarm of mosquitoes or midges flying over the water. She does this cunningly: jumping out of the water, the bleak spray knocks down insects, which, falling into the water, become its prey.

During the spawning period, the male bleak acquires more bright color. It shines, and its scales shimmer with mother-of-pearl. Indeed, bleak scales contain a large number of guanine, used to make artificial pearls.

Bleaks feel good in the aquarium. You just need to remember that it should be spacious and the water in it should be well aerated. The aquarium must be covered with glass. The water temperature for keeping bleaks is 14-16 °C, and for breeding 16-18 °C.

Roach. These fish are widespread in our country and are usually found in fresh water bodies with weak currents and a sandy bottom.

The roach's back is dark gray, and the rest of the body is silvery-white. The dorsal fin is small and pointed. The caudal, anal and pelvic fins are pink, and the pectoral fins are transparent.

In local reservoirs there are quite a lot of beautiful plants that can also be kept in an aquarium. But, unfortunately, most of them die off in winter, leaving behind seeds or buds that produce new shoots in the spring. Practice shows that artificially increasing the photoperiod to 18 hours a day makes it possible to preserve the life of aquatic plants during the winter period.

The tortoiseshell, spangleweed, hornwort and egg capsule acclimatize especially well in the aquarium.