Among the vast array of the most diverse aquatic inhabitants, there is one interesting small fish that lives in rivers, ponds, irrigation ditches and swamps. This unpretentious fish is called minnow, the varieties of which differ in both size and color. It can perfectly be found in muddy waters, in polluted ponds, in swampy lakes.
Common minnows, Chinese, etc. differ among them. There are two of its forms: lake and river.
This article below provides more detailed information about this fish: description, features, places of distribution and habitat, etc.
Minnow: description, photo
Small fish belongs to the carp family. A total of approximately 15 species of this fish stand out.
The main feature of minnow is its color - bright, especially during the spawning season. The beautiful skin of the fish, iridescent with rainbow colors, is covered with delicate small scales, and the larger scales are only on the midline of the back and belly.
Minnow is a fish that, like bitterness and top, is among the smallest. Its dimensions are only about 10-15 centimeters in length, and weight is about 100 g. Minnow females are large in comparison with males. The latter have a blunt nose shape and a brighter color. In males, the nose and head are dotted with sharp warts.
Minnow differs from other representatives of cyprinids by a wider body, number of pharyngeal teeth and small scales. Therefore, this fish has its own genus - Phoxinus.
A distinctive feature of the minnow is its unusual variegation, in connection with which the names belladonna and buffoon are more suitable for her. Her back is greenish with burgundy tints, less often bluish, with a dark strip along the middle of the back. The sides are yellowish-green with a golden sheen, turning closer to the belly in silver. The belly from the very lips to the caudal fin is reddish and sometimes white (minnows of the Sviyaga river). The yellowish fins are bordered with black, and their eyes are silvery with yellow.
It is difficult to accurately describe this fish in color, especially since its color may vary depending on the time of year and on the habitat. The most beautiful bright minnows can be observed during their spawning period.
In eastern Russia, another species of such fish is found - relatively large minnows, covered with large scales. They differ in lifestyle and appearance (body shape and a dumber face).
In general, the color of minnows can vary quite a lot depending on the environment and air temperature. According to their colors, all subspecies of this fish are different, for example, an ordinary minnow has a lateral line, reaching only the middle of the body, which then gradually disappears.
Names of fish
Other names for minnow are loach, naked, shank, shank, pestle, variegated, mottled. They reflect the external feature of the minnow - the belly of the fish has no scales and it has a motley color. And in fact, many minnows have specks of various sizes scattered on the greenish with a golden tint background of the lateral part of the trunk.
Another name is very suitable for this fish - minnow minnow, because some of them have bright beautiful fins.
There are miners with such obscure names: a soldier, a Circassian, a Cossack. The shape of these fish is fusiform, the head is relatively large. Their length is not more than 12 centimeters.
Spread
Minnow is a fish widely distributed throughout the European part of Russia; it is also found in Siberia (in Yakutia) to the Yenisei River basin. In Russia, this fish, often found in its fresh water bodies, however, in the south it is slightly less than in the northern water bodies.
A lot of fish in the mountain rivers of the Caucasus, in the Trans-Urals, in the Crimea, in the lakes of Altai. They are also found in small lakes near the villages, but due to the small size of the minnow and due to the muddy water they are difficult to see.
In addition to the river minnow, there is also a lake minnow, which lives among vegetation in the coastal zone, where it finds food. Moreover, he can live even in the brown water of a swamp, where there is practically no oxygen. Lake minnow is found in lakes that flow into the Arctic Ocean and in numerous lakes associated with Kama, Volga, Dnieper, Vyatka, Amur and Oka.
Minnow habitat
Common minnow - freshwater fish. Moreover, they give preference to cool water, therefore, they mainly live in rivers with a rocky bottom and a strong current. These fish do not like warm water and calm flow, and therefore they are rarely found in large lakes and rivers, where the water is calmer.
More accurate information about their distribution has not yet been revealed to the end, since minnow is very small. However, given the fact that in many rivers they are found in large quantities, we can conclude that this fish lives almost everywhere.
Mostly minnow live in streams, as well as in small rivers, and they reach almost the source where other species of fish are not observed. In mountainous areas, minnows can rise in rivers to considerable heights - up to several hundred meters. For example, they can often be seen in the water bodies of the Ural Mountains.
Most of the time, these fish live in flocks on rocky rifts. Moreover, these flocks can contain up to several thousand minnows, which are arranged in rows one above the other. The largest individuals, as a rule, keep closer to the bottom, and the smaller ones are higher.
The largest schools of fish are found offshore, because there the flow is weaker. They feed on the mill "beads" that fall into the water, and their traditional diet is small worms, crustaceans, midges, mosquitoes, etc. They can also feed on fish fry, various carrion, and a little less often algae.
About the spawning period
Minnow alone is very rare. Their flocks are especially numerous during the breeding season. In Russia, this season falls on May-June in river fish. In lake minnows, spawning occurs later - the beginning or middle of July.
Minnow spawning is peculiar, according to observers. Males gathered in packs pursue less numerous females. One of the females is surrounded by several males and keep closer to her. The strongest two males squeeze her on the sides, after which eggs leave the body of the female, immediately fertilized. Then these males are replaced by others, and this continues until the female is left without eggs. During the spawning period in males, the fins are painted in surprisingly bright colors. The main enemies of fry are mosquito larvae. From them, the fish find shelter in gravel or sand. Puberty in these fish occurs around the second or third year.
Minnow companions
Usually, minnow completely disappears in autumn, and in winter it burrows in silt or takes refuge under the roots of underwater plants and trees. But the practice of anglers has shown that in winter they are found in the water. It should be noted for fishermen that minnow avoids very shallow places in winter, as well as the deepest ones.
These small fish prefer shallow rivers with cold clear water, with a pebble, rocky or sandy bottom. Often they can be seen in streams. Usually in such places trouts are found along with them. Even minnow is a frequent companion of juvenile salmon fish. As noted above, these fish are always collected in large schools. Wherever this fish is found, there are always a lot of them, which explains their omnivorous nature. And they eat all the edible that is in the water.
Minnow, like a goldfish, can perfectly live in any aquarium.
Amur minnow
This variety of minnow is larger in size than others. Its dimensions reach a length of up to 24 centimeters. This fish is one of the most massive freshwater fish that live in cold, fast-flowing rivers of the semi-mountainous type. Amur minnow lives in places with a rocky bottom and a slightly slowed down current, as well as in places where there are silty and pebble-covered pebbles at the bottom.
This fish serves as food for many predatory fish. These are taimen, lenok, grayling and pike.
This species is quite widespread in the Amur River basin. Also, the Amur minnow in Primorye lives in the basin of the Razdolnaya river and in the rivers of the Sikhote-Alin slope (eastern side).
Fishing
Minnow is not an object of serious fishing. Due to the fact that these fish are very small, fishing enthusiasts pay little attention to it. For the most part, this fish is used as a nozzle for catching predatory fish. Trout, pike, burbot, perch and chub peck at them.
Despite all of the above, there are fishermen who go fishing just for minnow. They prefer to catch such a small fish in order to feel the pleasure of the fishing process. This refers precisely to such a case when fishing is a part of outdoor activities, and not part of the gain.
For fishing minnow it is better to use a fishing rod float. Minnow does not bite at night, but it is perfectly caught in the morning and during the day. What is minnow pecking at? He pecks well at worms, maggots and house flies.
Often this fish is caught with nets or head huts.
Conclusion
Quite widespread in almost all freshwater bodies of water, and in places very numerous minnow is not a commercial species of fish.
As you know, for fish, this fish is of little use as a food due to the fact that minnow meat has a bitter taste. Well used fish for feeding pigs and dogs. Her security status is low.