08.02.2025

Gudgeon (Gobio gobio)

Widespread as conventional fish of the rivers, streams, and rivers as well as lakes and ponds with favorable oxygen regime. Everywhere, however, prefers clean water with a sandy bottom.

Length 14-15 cm (22 in), weight 80 g. Body fusiform with elongated tail stem. Snout elongated, nostrils ahead of the cool down behind some bloating. Its mouth is inferior, with well-developed tendrils in the corners. Pharyngeal teeth double row. The eyes are small and yellowish. Dorsal fin short, without spines. Caudal short, emarginate. Body covered with large scales and devoid of mucus. The lateral line is complete, it 39-45 scales.

The back of the minnow dark, sometimes brownish with a green tint, sides and belly yellowish-silvery, on the sides there are from 6 to 14 black, brown or bluish transverse spots, sometimes merging together. Dorsal and caudal fins are yellowish-gray with rows of small dark spots, abdominal and chest – bright or colorless.

Gudgeon is a common inhabitant of ponds with a sandy bottom, clear cool water. Leads benthic lifestyle, rising in the water column only during fast movement or in case of danger, it forms large flocks of different ages and different sizes of fish. In summer, the minnows kept on sandy shallows and near the shallows, pebbly soils, a small but well-warmed hollows at the bottom of ponds, in the autumn of prefer the deeper locations with sandy or muddy-sandy bottom in the winter are deposited in the holes which come after a break-up.

Gudgeon are active during the day, preferring well-lit place with peschanyy or gravel bottom. Although the fusiform body shape allows it to swim fairly fast, large physical activity, it is no different. At night, the minnows are at the bottom, based on the relatively large pectoral fins. He is always interested in places where vspuchivajutsja sand or muddy sediments. Prolonged or long migrations minnow does.

Sexual maturity reaches on the gudgeon 2-3 year life (according to others, 3-4 year) with a body length of 6-8 cm and a weight of over 10 g. during the spawning period the males have the head, flanks and upper side of pectoral fins formed numerous epithelial tubercles. Yellow eggs (diameter of 0.6-0.7 mm) vymatyvayutsya portions on the sandy bottom of the shallows for 1.5-2 months from early may to late June. Often adhesive eggs are covered with small grit that saves them from mass extermination by predators. The fecundity of females of the gudgeon is from 1 to 15 thousand eggs (usually 4-7 thousand) depending on the length, mass and age of the fish. The incubation period is relatively short, lasts up to 15 days depending on water temperature. The larvae and juveniles, and adult fish, leading benthic lifestyle, by the end of summer or beginning of autumn, reaching a body length of 4-5 cm and a weight of up to 1 g. Females are slightly larger in size than males.

Gudgeon – bentofag. The basis of the diet are benthic animals: insect larvae, worms, small molluscs and crustaceans, and partially the remains of plants. In the spring in large amounts consumes the eggs of other fish. Juvenile fish feed on rotifers and plankton rakoobraznymi, the main food of adult fish are midges, worms, insect larvae, partial – residues.

Due to the small size of the economic value gudgeon has not.

On some bodies of water in small quantities it sometimes appears as by-catch, among other fish species. It is a food competitor for valuable commercial fish-benthophages in the first place the bream. Eating the eggs of valuable fish species, it can harm fisheries.

The increase of body length during the first two years is 3-3,5 cm Large minnows can reach a body length of 20 cm and body mass of 300 g.

In sport fishing, the minnow is most often used as a nozzle for zivcovic gear and as the object of fishing, especially for novice anglers. The best time for catching minnows is considered to be early morning or evening, especially after rain, when the water becomes cloudy. Catching minnows can float rod on the nozzle of the Joker (especially the autumn) or small worms. In the quiet waters, and at depth it is better caught on a worm, on the rocks is enough his half to even catch a few minnows. Bloodworms nasazhivajut on a hook on 2-3 pieces, threading the sting of the hook below the head. Grain and plant tips for catching the fish reluctant to bite it, and maggots, and ant eggs.

Bite minnow decisive, often he immediately drowns float, but hooking it carefully, prismatico not to break the hook lip.

The meat of the fish tender and delicious, and prized by some anglers as one of the necessary components of the soup.

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