Verkhovka common, or little one, or oatmeal, or top melter (Belica) is a small schooling fish that inhabits small ponds and lakes. When frightened, it jumps out of the water. One of the smallest fish in our country. Prefers quiet places, swimming near the surface of the water. Spawning is portioned, spread over several months. During this time, the female can lay up to 5,000 eggs. The fry are large and begin to feed almost immediately. For the winter, the verkhovka is buried in the ground. Some hobbyists keep this fish in aquariums.
Verkhovka lifestyle
Schooling fish. Verkhovka prefers quiet places, swimming near the surface of the water. It descends to depth only on cold nights and during periods of bad weather, when the water in the bottom layers is warmer. It adheres to bottom areas in early spring and late autumn. For the winter it is buried in the ground. In streams it lives alone, in ponds it gathers in flocks. In windy weather, the verkhovka always stays near the coast; at this time it can only be found on the leeward side.
Bleak -Alburnus lucidus Heck
Bleak is one of the most common and well-known fish in the CIS, found almost everywhere. The body of the bleak is elongated, thin, covered with large steel-colored scales sparkling in the sun. The back is darker, gray-blue with a greenish tint, the sides and belly are silvery with a strong metallic sheen. The upper and lower fins of the bleak are dirty yellowish in color. The scales are very delicate and sit very loosely on the body, so they fall off at the slightest touch.
Bleak lives in almost all large and small rivers, and also inhabits flowing ponds and lakes with clean, transparent water and a sandy bottom. The bleak is extremely careful. For most of the year, bleak swims in schools at the surface of the water, and it stays at depth only in winter. Their favorite habitat is quiet, deep waters, and only occasionally it is caught on shallow riffles. Extremely lively and very agile, it is constantly on the move and scurries back and forth near the surface, looking for prey. She greedily rushes after a small midge or worm floating by. On warm summer evenings, immediately after sunset, when clouds of mosquitoes and midges hover just above the water, the bleaks become very agitated. Keeping in flocks, they then rush after swarms of mosquito mosquitoes and, jumping out of the water one after another, try to knock down the closest insects with splashes of water in order to refresh themselves. And a mosquito, once in the water, immediately becomes their easy prey.
Bleak matures quickly and begins to reproduce in the second year of life. Bleak usually begins spawning in mid-May and continues almost until the end of June. The bleak lays its eggs in shallow water on grass, tree branches or stones located near the very banks of a river or lake. The eggs are very small and numerous, and juveniles soon emerge from them.
In France, bleak scales are used to prepare the so-called oriental essence (Essence d'Orient), which is used to tint artificial pearls. The recipe for preparing this essence was invented back in the century before last, and since then it has been increasingly improved.
Editor's note: Tetragonopterus or rhomboid tetra
Currently, the preparation of oriental essence is carried out as follows. The scraped scales of the bleak are placed in water and stirred until there is no silver pigment left on it, which separates in the form of crystalline particles and settles to the bottom. Then all the scales are removed from the container, and a silvery sediment remains at the bottom of the vessel. This silvery liquid, after purification from impurities, is the famous Essence d'Orient.
To prepare pearls, take small blown glass balls and carefully add essence, drop by drop, through the holes, which, adhering to their inner surface, gives them the appearance of pearls. The more irregular the shape of these balls, the more they resemble real pearls, and they can be distinguished from real ones only by their weight
To obtain a pound of such essence you need 4 pounds of scales, which requires no more or less than 15,000 bleaks.
Among lovers of country holidays, garden ponds are becoming increasingly popular. Yes, not simple ones, but “living” ones - that is, inhabited by fish.
The inhabitants of such country ponds and their homes require close attention and careful care so that the owner can proudly talk about his experience in fish farming. Let's talk about who, how and why lives in the garden pond.
Usually, such an important task as the construction of a fish pond is undertaken by enthusiastic summer residents who are not afraid of “neither rain nor slush.” In our case - year-round care of the reservoir and its inhabitants. Especially for the residents... But that’s all later. At first the thought appears: I want a pond. Then the second: why not put some fish in there... A start has been made! Now it's a matter of technique.
Reproduction
Spawning at the verkhovka is portioned, extended, begins at a temperature of 15°C, and takes place from the end of May to the beginning of August. The female lays from 600 to 5000 colorless sticky eggs (about 1 mm in diameter) at the very surface of the water on the lower part of the leaves of water lilies, white lilies, pondweed, arrowhead and other plants, and often on smooth sticks, boards and other objects thrown into the water. The clutches look like chains 1-2 eggs wide. Verkhovka eggs can withstand prolonged exposure to air. Sometimes they stick to the paws of birds and are thus transferred to other bodies of water.
Methods for catching bleak
Since bleak (sebel) does not differ in significant size, to catch it you need a light float tackle with a fishing line with a diameter of 0.14-0.16 mm and a leash with a thickness of 0.1 to 0.12 mm. Due to fishing conditions, it is not necessary to use a thinner leader, although you can do without a leader at all. Naturally, you will need a light and sensitive float, like a goose feather, weighing no more than 3 grams. You will also have to use fairly small hooks, no larger than No. 16-20 on the international scale. As bait, you can use bloodworms, maggots or dung worms, not in large fragments. Usually the depth is set to about 10 cm (minimum), since sebel prefers to feed almost at the surface of the water. Bleak can be caught with fly fishing tackle or spinning rod, using a fly or mayfly as bait.
The caught bleak can be placed in an aquarium at home. In addition, bleak can serve as an excellent live bait for catching larger predatory fish, since it is necessarily included in the diet of any predatory fish.
The gastronomic characteristics of this small fish deserve special attention. If you make canned food from it in tomato or oil, then it is a real delicacy. In addition, bleak can be smoked, dried, fried, stewed, etc. In other words, despite its small size, you can prepare any dish from it.
Catching bleak on a float rod is an exciting spectacle, as the bites follow one after another. If you purposefully catch this fish, you will never be left without a catch. You can catch hundreds of fish in an hour, which can give you great pleasure.
Development of the Verkhovka
When hatching, the length of the larvae is 5.2-5.3 mm. The mouth is terminal, open. The yolk sac is small and dissolves within two days. The large swim bladder is not filled with air; it fills only when the body length is about 6 mm. In verkhovka larvae, the snout lengthens, the mouth becomes almost upper. The larvae live in schools among vegetation. Upon reaching a body length of 17-18 mm, the larva turns into a fry. The fry are similar in body shape to adult fish. During the first few weeks of life, the juveniles stay in shallow water, where the water temperature is usually higher. As they mature (at the age of 30-40 days), the juveniles move into deeper water. In the first year of life, the verkhovna grows up to 2 cm and weighs about 0.2 g, in the second year - up to 3-4 cm and weighs 4-5 g, in the third - up to 5-6 cm and weighs 6 g.
Bleak: description
Bleak is a small fish that has a short life cycle, only 5-6 years, compared to other representatives of the carp family, such as crucian carp, which can live up to 12 years, roach with a life cycle of up to 20 years, carp, which lives about 35 years. The maximum length of the bleak is about 15 cm, with a weight of no more than 60 grams. Although rare, larger, trophy specimens are found, weighing up to 100 grams and up to 20 cm in length. The following features are considered characteristic of bleaking:
- The body is not high, but elongated, with an almost straight back and a slightly convex belly.
- The tail ends in a large dark fin with a deep notch.
- The sides of the bleak are highly compressed.
- The scales of this fish have a metallic color with a mirror shine.
- The back is gray-blue with an olive tint.
- The abdomen is light.
- The fins are distinguished by an ashen or pale yellowish tint.
A characteristic feature of bleak is that its scales can be easily removed upon contact with a hard surface. Therefore, it is not difficult to clean this fish; just grind it with salt in a large container.
Pelagic fish have a classic color scheme of dark tops and light bottoms to protect themselves from bottom predators and birds in bright conditions.
Keeping verkhovka in aquariums
Aquarium: a community aquarium of an oblong shape, tightly closed with a lid on top. There should be a distance of at least 10 cm between the water and the lid. Dimensions: from 70-100 liters for a flock and a length of at least 100 cm. Water: active aeration, good filtration, weekly changes of up to 20-30% of water. When there is a lack of oxygen in the water, the verkhovna becomes purple in color. Temperature: 17-24°C. Lighting: bright. Soil: sandy. Plants: thickets of living plants. Decoration: driftwood, stones, requires a lot of free space for swimming.
Feeding: in aquariums takes plant (algae) and animal (rotifers, bloodworms, cyclops, daphnia, tubifex, crustaceans, caddis fly larvae, invertebrate eggs, eggs of other fish, scraped meat) food. Very gluttonous.
Behavior: Verkhovka is a very active, schooling fish. You must buy at least 10 tails at once. Pisces are in constant motion, where one swims, another immediately follows. Personality: diurnal, peaceful, timid. When frightened, fish often jump out of the water. Water zone: upper and middle layer of water. Can be kept with: peaceful small fish. Cannot be kept with: slow, large and predatory fish.
Fish breeding: seasonal spawning (April-May), portioned, paired. Producers are housed for 7-14 days and intensively fed with live food, and the water temperature is raised to 18-24°C. When the female’s abdomen is rounded, the producers are transplanted into a spawning aquarium. Spawning tank with a volume of 20-40 liters, enhanced aeration, water level 10-25 cm. One of the corners is planted with plants (pod, sagittaria, ludwigia, vallisneria, arrowhead, hornwort). Morning spawning with the first rays of sun. Spawning takes place over several days. Fish lay their eggs on the undersurface of floating plant leaves. The male guards the clutch for about four days. Sexual differences: the female is larger and wider than the male. During spawning, epithelial tubercles appear on the head of males; in females, a tuberous thickening is clearly visible in front of the anal fin and around the urogenital opening. Offspring: 5 mm long larvae hatched from eggs are able to immediately swim and get food. Feeding of fry: starting food - “live dust”, rotifers, ciliates, a little later - cyclops, daphnia. Depositing from parents: the female is separated after spawning, the male a little later.
