Description
Lives in slow waters with a soft bottom: lakes, ponds, reservoirs and calm rivers. Omnivorous, it feeds on the bottom. Very widespread and farmed in the Czech Republic.
How to identify it
Four barbels (two pairs), a long dorsal fin with a serrated ray, protrusible mouth with thick lips.
Appearance
Sturdy, fairly deep body, covered in the typical form with large, shiny scales with bronze-gold sheen, more intense on the head; the belly is pale. The dorsal fin is long and takes up much of the back, while the tail and anal fin range from dark bronze to orange. Fish farming has produced different varieties: the mirror carp, with a few large, irregular scales, and the leather carp, almost scaleless. Wild fish are more slender, almost torpedo-shaped. It is easily told from crucian carp by its barbels.
Habitat and habits
Prefers wide, still or slow waters with a soft bottom and vegetation: lakes, ponds, reservoirs, oxbows and calm stretches of large rivers. It moves in groups and digs in the sediment with its mouth, clouding the water and leaving clouds of mud that give away its presence. It also feeds by day, but more intensely at night and around dawn. It performs best in warm water; in winter it slows down a lot and spends the cold season even under the ice. It tolerates waters low in oxygen.
There's more in the app
This species' bite index, recommended baits and methods, and the rules of the day for every water. Offline too.
Soon on Android and iPhone
