Even in the recent past, the Middle Volga and adjacent reservoirs were famous for their stocking. And the sturgeon and salmon species, which were caught in huge quantities and valued much higher than the “white” species: pike, bream, pike perch and others, were the basis of fish stocks in the Samara Region . The so-called “red” fish was the most important commodity for export and was quoted on the domestic market. In the 19th century herring was also famous (in particular, black-backed), whose jambs arrived to spawn in these places.
Species diversity
Today, on the Middle Volga and in the surrounding water bodies, there are more than 50 species of underwater inhabitants that make up fish stocks in the Samara region. They belong to 16 families and 10 orders (some are represented rather poorly: for example, only sturgeon is found from sturgeons).
Cyprinids
Species diversity is mainly represented in this order. There are more than 30 species and 20 genera. Fish of the Samara region: roach and silver bream, bream and Sinti, asp and dace, ide and chub, grass carp and common carp, pusto and chekhon, crucian carp and silver carp - these are the main representatives of this detachment.
Perch
This detachment is inferior to cyprinids in the presented variety quite noticeably. It is represented by 9 species: perch, ruff, bersh, pikeperch, bulls, button heads, sculpin, rotan.
Salmon, herring, other species
Fish of the Samara region are also represented by salmon-like. There are 5 species: brook and rainbow trout, peled, smelt (smelt Euro), vendace. The herring-like order is represented by only two types of herring: tyulka and black-backed. The order of needle-shaped is represented by Caspian fish-needle, catfish-like - common catfish, cod-like - burbot, eel-like - river eel, pike-like - ordinary pike, sturgeon - sterlet.
Rare and endangered fish species of the Samara region. List
As a result of industrial and commercial activities of people, from the 19th century a gradual disappearance of some fish species that previously lived in abundance in these places begins. Here is some of them:
- whitefish
- chub;
- trout;
- Russian quick-catch;
- Beluga
- dace;
- salmon;
- sturgeon;
- Podust Volga;
- stellate sturgeon, taimen;
- black herring.
Some species, due to their ecological tolerance, were able to adapt to the current environmental conditions. For example, the sterlet, which preserved its spawning grounds in the upper zones of the reservoirs and survived. Although its fishing catch is now prohibited by law.
Why fish species disappear
It is characteristic that sturgeons in the Samara region until recently (the 19th century, the beginning of the 20th) were Russia's national resource and wealth. And according to the catch of these fish, our country occupied one of the first places in the world. The situation was significantly changed by the development of hydropower. The construction of dams and the construction of stations affected the river regime and prevented the free distribution and spawning of certain species.
Among other factors - a change in the regime of water bodies (oxygen and feed), discharge into the water of a variety of waste, household and industrial. Water also pollutes water - water and land. A constant overfishing of fish (catching more of it than can be reproduced) contributes to its gradual disappearance.
Some types of fish in the Samara region: photo and description
- Pike is a fast-growing predatory fish that consumes small fry and adult individuals. It is found mainly in a shallow zone near the coast. Spawning begins early and lasts a long time (up to 30 days). For this reason, pike reproduction is not particularly difficult and is observed annually, although some natural and industrial factors still affect the death of eggs and fry.
- Brown trout, or trout-like trout, is also a representative of fish in the Samara region (see photo above). The trout from the salmon squad lives in small rivers and streams. The environment is characterized by the presence of fast currents, cold water, a pebble or sandy bottom. This fish is found in the Samara region in the northeast (Kamyshlinsky and Klyavlinsky districts). In recent years, the disappearance of the species from river basins has been characteristic.
- Sudak is a rather small species that lives in the reservoirs of the Samara region. The main reasons restraining the growth of its reproduction are the limited number of male producers, their mass and illegal catch in the period before spawning.
- Snout, or European smelt. This fish has two forms: large and small. The appearance is characterized by a fat fin, an elongated body, a small scale, which easily disappears. The dorsal fin is a little back. The body of the fish is translucent. Snout can be 10 cm long, and smelt - up to 30.