Description
Small fish of still waters, the only European representative of the mudminnows. It lives in ponds, ditches and marshes with muddy bottoms in the Danube basin. In Austria it was considered extinct from 1975 and was rediscovered in 1992.
How to identify it
Small, stocky, with a blunt head and large round scales, including on the opercula. Back and flanks brown or reddish-brown with irregular dark spots, sometimes with a copper lateral stripe. The caudal fin is rounded.
Appearance
Elongated body with a blunt head and large round scales. Reddish-brown colour with irregular dark spots, pale yellow or white belly. Males are smaller (8-10 cm), females reach about 13 cm.
Habitat and habits
Shallow, vegetation-rich waters with muddy bottoms: ponds, ditches, marshes and peat bogs, often oxygen-poor. It also breathes air at the surface thanks to a swim bladder connected to the gut. It copes well with conditions extreme for other fish.
Where it lives
Scattered across the inland waters of south-eastern Europe, from the Danube basin (Austria, Hungary, Slovakia) to the delta in Romania and the lower Dniester. In Austria it has survived in the Danube backwaters (Fadenbach, between Orth and Eckartsau) and there are reintroductions from captive breeding.
Conservation status
IUCN: Vulnerable (VU). Austrian Red List: critically endangered (CR). Habitats Directive: Annex II. Not invasive.
Can be confused with
The pike has a shape and mouth very different from those of Umbra.
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
