Whitefish: how and where to catch, features, habits, rare species

Description and photo of whitefish

There are many varieties of whitefish. Some of them are listed in the Red Book. Representatives of the genus can differ quite strongly from each other.

Certain individuals are so different from their counterparts that only an experienced fisherman can understand that it is whitefish. Even if a fisherman knows what the most common whitefish looks like, for example, the common whitefish, he may not recognize the caught muksun, which is from the same genus, as a member of the family.

Characteristic feature: lack of upper teeth.

The following subspecies are distinguished:

• bounty;
• European;
• Siberian;
• Chudsky;
• Volkhovsky;
• multistamen.

General signs:

• the scales are silvery, the body is elongated, the abdomen is light;
• lower mouth;
• fins of a dark shade;
• the adipose fin is small.

Characteristic feature: lack of upper teeth, expressive eyes.

Signs are sometimes subtle and vary in some individuals. The pronunciation of sik is incorrect. This is what the Siberian whitefish looks like: it is quite large, its body can reach 60 cm, and its weight is 2 kg.

In one lake there may be fish that differ in external characteristics.

Individuals are distinguished:

• lake form;
• walk-through form;
• river type.

A trophy specimen can have different colors and sizes, and not every fisherman, having caught it, will be able to recognize the variety.

Representatives of salmon prefer water bodies with a high oxygen content. Some individuals stay closer to the surface of the water. Others sink to the bottom or swim into coastal waters.

On a new body of water, it is not always clear where the desired trophy is found and how to catch it, even if you are absolutely sure that it is possible to catch it in a given place. Whitefish is a cautious fish.

Large salmon, living in medium waters, weigh about 5 kg. These varieties include the pyzhyan, which can weigh 7 kg. In Siberia, where whitefish are found, a fisherman may be lucky enough to catch larger prey. It is not easy to catch such a trophy, and you will have to try hard to achieve it. The Siberian subspecies is a great success for the fisherman.

There are more than 50 varieties. Omul, vendace, peled are all varieties of whitefish. If you compare in the photo what the whitefish of the peled subspecies looks like and the pyzhyan variety, the differences will be visible to the naked eye.

Appearance and features

Photo: What a whitefish looks like

Whitefish are distinguished by a high degree of variability: species can differ greatly from each other; sometimes in one body of water 5-6 varieties of whitefish are caught so dissimilar to each other that they can be considered representatives of completely different genera. The only common features that can be distinguished are the humped snout, as well as some features of the structure of the mouth: the small size of the oral cavity, the absence of teeth on the maxillary bone and its shortness. Everything else changes, sometimes dramatically. For example, some whitefish have 15 gill rakers, while others have up to 60. They themselves can be either smooth or jagged, and the body of the fish is quite short or clearly elongated.

The size of whitefish can also vary greatly, from quite small to large fish - up to 90 cm in length and weight of 6 kg. There are lake, river and anadromous whitefish, predators and those that feed only on plankton: in a word, diversity is their main characteristic. Nevertheless, most varieties are characterized by the following features: the body is elongated, pressed on the sides, scales are dense, silvery in color, and a dark dorsal fin. The back itself is also dark, it may have a slightly greenish or purple tint. The belly is lighter than the body, light gray to creamy.

Interesting fact: Fishing for whitefish is easiest in the spring, when hungry fish attack everything. It is more difficult, but not much, to catch it in the fall, but the reward is greater - over the summer it gains fat, becomes larger and tastier. In summer, whitefish bite worse; here you need to carefully choose bait and use lures.

Spawning

Representatives of salmon spawn in winter and autumn. This distinguishes it from known fish. Females do not cover all the eggs. During cold periods, it looks for warmer places. The eggs remain preserved until spring.

In spring and summer, the first fry emerge from it. You can find out what whitefish looks like as an adult from the Internet. The eggs are similar in appearance to trout eggs, but they are much smaller.

It actively bites in the spring and before the start of spawning. Hunting for it is truly an exciting activity.

How, when and what to catch whitefish

Silverfish can be caught with a variety of gear:

• fly fishing;
• on a float rod;
• spinning tackle;
• for a winter fishing rod;
• path;
• jig tackle.

Lake whitefish are not like pike or perch. An imitation jig should be used as bait for such an individual. The hook used is three or four, according to Russian standards. In lakes, fish often gather in schools. It is better to start searching for them in shallow water.

In rivers, large whitefish are caught using a medium fly. The fish attacks quickly, and you need to be able to hook it. You need to fight confidently, but carefully. Coregonus, as whitefish are called in Latin, when fished out, furiously try to return to their habitat and actively resist.

Fishing in winter and autumn

It is best to catch whitefish in the spring, although in winter it actively bites, mainly from the bottom. The line should be set a little thicker than when fishing for perch. A size from 0.2 mm is suitable. Spoons should be without threads in red and yellow shades, and have a narrow shape.

Ice fishing can continue from sunrise to sunset. When fishing with a jig, you can use bark beetle larvae. But there is no need to add additional bloodworms.

When fishing from ice with jig tackle, you need to try different baits. It may not be caught from the bottom. Sometimes fish attack at the bottom. The food-loving fish feed even in frosty conditions, and fishermen can reap a decent catch in winter. With the right bait, fishing is quite productive.

Whitefish is a schooling fish, so if a fisherman manages to stumble upon a family, he will not leave without a catch. Provided that the bait is selected correctly and the tackle is used.

When fishing, you should study places near ledges and rubble, turns and rifts. This makes hunting for whitefish different from fishing for other fish. The angler will have to try different gear and explore open water.

This “beast” is caught very well in the fall. During this period, the individuals have already gained weight and it is very pleasant to catch them. Worms, bloodworms, maggots, and fry are used as baits. The large specimen is cautious and will not simply allow itself to be caught. But fishing is also so bright and exciting.

Large whitefish are caught in the fairway, small fish - near the shore.

Coregonus prefer a depth of 4-6 meters.

Features of whitefish fishing

The hunt for a trophy should begin immediately after the snow melts. It is recommended to use jigs as bait, modernized and modified for specific fishing conditions. So, grayling spawns in May. And our fish is just eager to feast on caviar. That is why at this time it is worth giving preference to those tackles that are somewhat similar to caviar.

From early to mid-summer, mosquitoes actively dominate water bodies. Therefore, equipment that imitates this insect will be in definite demand among predators. From mid-July and right up to September, the individual becomes very passive to various kinds of baits. Because there is already a lot of food in the reservoir.

Already with the arrival of cold weather, when the fish need to actively feed before spawning, the bite resumes. In the coastal zone you may come across small specimens. If you decide to hunt for a real trophy, then you should go to the fairway.

The whitefish bite is particularly sharp. The attack of the bait occurs instantly, rising diagonally to the top. Then the fish makes a sideways turn, and the prey is attacked and quickly goes to depth. If a predator, having grabbed the bait, is in one place, this is the exception rather than the rule.

In the process of fishing, prepare for the most powerful resistance of the individual. If fishing takes place from a boat, he dives under its bottom, and unfortunately everything ends with the fish disappearing. And near the coast, a whitefish can turn belly up and dive. As a result, the hook flies out of his mouth. This is a very cunning prey, which is not so easy to catch.

Fishing for whitefish with a float rod

Even taking into account the fact that whitefish is a predator, it can be caught using a standard float rod. This type of fishing gear is recommended for use in the spring, when everyone uses worms as bait. In this case, it is not intended to use anything special.

A standard telescopic rod of five meters, a monofilament thread that can support a large specimen - and you can safely go fishing. Some fishermen choose 0.2 mm thick braid. It is recommended to take a float that is not very large.

Plus, the color of its lower part should be a neutral shade. All in order not to scare off the cautious predator in any way. The number of hook used will depend entirely on the size of the bait, including the weight of the expected catch.

Fly fishing for whitefish

Fly fishing for trophies is possible both in summer and winter. As equipment, you can choose a fishing rod 0.6 m long and a reel with a movable spool. The most important tackle in this case is a pear-shaped sinker weighing up to 15 grams. It is placed at the tip of the leash. A couple of nymphs are placed slightly higher, at a distance of 0.3 meters from the sinker. To do this, you can also select homemade products that imitate larvae, for example, from red yarn.

It is recommended to lower the tackle created in this way to the surface of the bottom of the reservoir, and then slightly lift it. If you don't have a fish finder with you, finding whitefish habitat will be an insurmountable task. But if you are lucky enough to catch at least one predator, be sure to mark the depth of its location on the braided line, and search precisely in this horizon.

Fishing for whitefish with a spinning rod

Hunting for a trophy using a spinning rod using the jig method is considered the most exciting and interesting. The most difficult thing in this case is finding the location of the whitefish. The equipment is not much different from pike perch jigs. A spinning rod with good sensitivity, braid and a reliable reel are all you need. As for the choice of jig baits, there are no restrictions.

You can take any model, the main thing is that they are suitable in size. Whitefish has a narrow throat, like pike perch, which is why it is important not to overdo it when choosing baits and hooks.

For this type of fishing, light shades of bait are well suited. You can also take bright yellow, orange and even acid yellow bait models. They will definitely not go unnoticed by the predator.

Bottom fishing for whitefish

This type of fishing for specimens of the whitefish family is recommended to be used in late autumn. It is at this time that the predator often approaches the coast. In this case, it is necessary to prepare a bottom with a reel that has fast reeling, a monofilament thread that can withstand a future catch, and a sinker.

Experienced fishermen recommend using maggots as the main bait. It is worth throwing the bait into the reservoir so that it reaches the surface of the bottom of the reservoir. And only then can you begin to implement bottom wiring. Produce it slowly and evenly, with short pauses. Only in this case will the bait have the necessary attractiveness for whitefish.

Bottom fishing can be done in a slightly different way. At the same time, a sinker located on a monofilament thread and an artificial red bait catch the surface of the bottom of the reservoir and, of course, the pit. Since these are the places the predator often chooses to live.

Tactics and methods of catching whitefish in winter

In the winter season, you should give preference to a nodding fishing rod, which is particularly durable and frost-resistant. It is created on the basis of a reliable wooden rod with a length of 0.3-0.4 m. The equipment can be used without a nod. And they are not equipped with coils at all. The fishing rod body, which is created in the form of a reel, acts as a storage area for fishing rods. It is recommended to take a particularly high-quality fishing line; if it is a monofilament thread, then at least 0.17 mm thick.

A fishing rod for implementing the vertical trolling method is the most popular method of fishing for a predator. If you equip this equipment with high-quality bait, your catch will be large. The spinner game is standard. This is an alternation of twitches and short pauses.

Particularly reliable balancers for fishing predators - beyond any competition. Although today fishermen often use homemade ones. For example, a jig or an artificial fly. The latter are fixed slightly above the spinner.

Lures, baits, lures, groundbait

It is recommended to use a variety of invertebrate models as bait, including artificial imitation eggs and fry.

If you plan to bottom fish and hunt with a wire fishing rod, you should give preference to worms, shellfish meat and invertebrate inhabitants of the aquatic environment.

The predator reacts well to fly baits with light “petals” and to large jigs. As in the process of fishing for perch, the additional use of a fish eye jig has an amazing result.

Whitefish is a very popular and tasty fish that is especially popular today. But to catch a predator you should try, because it is very difficult to find it in the thickness of the reservoir.

Habitat and distribution

Whitefish lives both on the territory of the Russian Federation and beyond its borders. Places where it lives: the Urals, Lake Ladoga, Karelia, Baikal, reservoirs of the Murmansk region. There are few of these places in America: Canada and Alaska. It is also found on other continents.

The Atlantic whitefish lives in Scotland. Rivers and lakes where whitefish are found are bodies of water with cool, oxygen-rich water. You can find out what American whitefish or the rare Baikal whitefish looks like on numerous forums and websites. Whitefish from Lake Baikal can reach a weight of up to 10 kg.

What does whitefish eat?

Whitefish eat both insects and fish eggs. He also eats minnows and bleak. It can attack prey either alone or in a flock.

When fishing in some waters, you must obtain a license. Certain subspecies of whitefish are listed in the Red Book. Catching them is strictly prohibited.

Important!

Often this salmon representative attacks its prey from a hiding place, which in most cases is a sand pit.

The desired trophy of any angler feeds all year round.

Large individuals lead a predatory lifestyle and feed on fry, small fish, and insects. It is remarkable what whitefish looks like during an attack. Coregonus are true predators. They attack prey from cover, sometimes in a whole flock.

A lot can be said about what whitefish looks like during hunting and fishing. But it’s better to see and feel it once.

Where does whitefish live?

Photo: Whitefish in Russia

Its range includes almost all of Europe, including the European part of Russia. He also lives in northern Asia and North America.

In Europe, it is most common in the northern and central parts, including:

• Scandinavia;
• Great Britain;
• Germany;
• Switzerland;
• Baltics;
• Belarus.

In Russia, it inhabits the basins of most of the large rivers flowing into the seas of the Arctic Ocean, as well as many lakes: from the Volkhov River in the west and all the way to Chukotka itself. It is also found further south, but less frequently. For example, it lives in Baikal and other lakes of Transbaikalia. Although most of the whitefish's range in Asia is in Russia, these fish also live beyond its borders, for example, in the lakes of Armenia - for example, whitefish are fished in the largest of them, Sevan. In North America, the fish lives in the waters of Canada, Alaska, and the US states near the northern border. Previously, the Great Lakes, as well as the alpine lakes in Europe, were very populated by whitefish - but in both places, most of the previously inhabited species became extinct, others became very rare.

Whitefish live mainly in northern rivers and lakes because they combine all the qualities they prefer: the water in them is at the same time cool, clean and rich in oxygen. Whitefish are demanding of all of the above, and if the water becomes polluted, they quickly leave the reservoir or die out. This fish is fresh, but there are also species that spend part of their time in salt water, such as omul and Siberian vendace: they can rise to the mouths of rivers and spend time in bays, or even swim out to the open sea - but still must return to fresh water .

Young whitefish swim near the surface of the water and usually close to the shore, but adults tend to stay deeper, most often at a depth of 5-7 m, and sometimes they can even dive into holes on the river bottom and swim closer to the surface only to feed. They love to live near rifts with cool springs.

Now you know where whitefish are found. Let's take a look at what fish eat.

How does whitefish reproduce?

Male whitefish reach sexual maturity at 3 years of age. Females mature later. They often become sexually mature at 6 years of age. The place where whitefish lay their eggs is the river fairway.

Interesting!

Whitefish of different species interbreed with each other when they find themselves in unfamiliar habitats. Whitefish spawn in sand and pebbles. Prefers to choose pits for these purposes.

If you have wondered what a whitefish looks like when it is growing up, then the answer to this question is simple. Adult whitefish, like well-known and common fish, grow from fry.

The female leaves more than 25,000 eggs. Coregonus eggs are spawned at water temperatures of +2…+5C.

The incubation period is quite long. It lasts up to 200 days.

This beautiful and neat fish has enough enemies. The most basic of them are helminths, to put it simply, worms. They can penetrate both the gills and the intestines of the whitefish. That is why fish of this species must be very carefully processed before consumption. If you brine whitefish, do it for a long time.

Bugs and beetles are dangerous for fry.

Population and species status

Many whitefish species are divided into subspecies based on their habitat. The lacustrine whitefish lives and breeds within its native body of water. The river form also gravitates towards its native places, but during the spawning period, individuals can swim to the upper reaches of the river.

The migratory whitefish is significantly different from its counterparts. It is more elongated in shape and its color is darker. There is a clearly visible hump on the back. What a whitefish looks like living in the same body of water depends on various factors. Individuals from the same lake often differ both in appearance and in their taste preferences.

Just 18 years ago, only two species were included in the Red Book. Today there are many more of them. The number of whitefish, unfortunately, has decreased greatly. This especially affected Lake Peipsi. Bauntovsky, Volkhovsky, Chudsky and even common whitefish - all these species are on the verge of extinction and are listed in the Red Book, because their population is rapidly declining.

You can now only find out what rare whitefish looks like from the Internet. On the same Lake Peipus, its catching is completely prohibited.

Spawning and feeding of fish

A sexually mature individual is considered at the age of three years . Whitefish spawn in fresh water bodies, on shallows with a sandy bottom and dense vegetation. Spawning occurs in the fall and can continue until the end of winter. In this case, the temperature should not exceed five degrees Celsius. The female is capable of producing up to 45 thousand eggs. The warmer the water, the faster the fry appear.

The fry feed on plankton, and large fish eat the fry themselves, mollusks, crustaceans and small fish. The whitefish waits for the victim while being in the hole. It will not disdain its brothers, especially if they are smaller in size. Predators find food everywhere without difficulty. The fate of the caviar is of little concern to them. Females, leaving the spawning site, do not cover the nest. The hatched fry stay in large flocks for about 2 months, without leaving the shores. As they grow up, the flock disintegrates, since adult individuals prefer to live and hunt alone, gathering during the spawning period.

The weight of a one-year-old individual reaches 100 g, and the body length is up to 30 cm.

Taste qualities of whitefish

Whitefish is quite tasty. It is low in bone and low in calories. The handsome guy has fatty white meat, which contains a lot of different beneficial microelements, vitamins and minerals. Such food is useful for anemia and some chronic diseases. The composition includes Omega 3, a very important and extremely useful substance.

The caviar of this representative of salmon is equated to salmon, it is so tasty and healthy.

Popular recipes

One of the positive qualities of commercial fish is that it can be prepared in a variety of ways. Whitefish are fried and boiled, smoked and pickled, stewed and stuffed. A huge number of different dishes are prepared from it.

Fried whitefish is a very tasty dish that will be a wonderful decoration for the holiday table. The recipe is quite simple.

Ingredients:

• fish carcass;
• egg;
• butter and sunflower;
• turmeric;
• salt and pepper;
• wheat flour.

1 kg. enough whitefish to prepare 4 servings. If you want to know what fried whitefish looks like, just go to any culinary site. This fish is delicious and, with due diligence, it produces amazing dishes.

Whitefish is a commercial fish that is now on the verge of extinction. They are trying to preserve the population by allowing its fishing only in certain reservoirs and introducing a fishing license

In the Urals and Yakutia, these salmon are mainly caught by professional fishermen.

Photos and descriptions of whitefish of different species can vary greatly.

He has quite a lot of enemies, from helminths to ducks.

Catching a trophy specimen is entertaining. You can catch it with a float rod, a baitcaster, or a spinning rod. The beauty of whitefish is that landing large specimens is truly an interesting experience. The large Siberian whitefish is very careful and will not easily be given to the fisherman.

The fisherman will have to try hard to find its habitat. It is not easy to catch such prey. But the reward will be a very tasty trophy, which can be salted, smoked, and fried.

Not every fisherman can boast that he has caught a whitefish. This is especially true for the species of pyzhyan and muksun.

Variety of cooking methods

Catching whitefish on an industrial scale is permitted only under a license on the lakes where it is bred. This happens because this fish is a representative of valuable species. But whitefish is not only valuable and healthy, it is also delicious. Its meat is very tender, therefore it is widely used in nutrition.

Since whitefish is almost universal, its preparation recipes are extremely diverse. All whitefish dishes will turn out tasty, and many will be healthy. But in any case, cooking begins with cleaning the fish from scales.

Whitefish is easy and quick to clean. The exception is a fish that has become weathered. If the scales have already dried, then you can put the fish in lukewarm water - after 5-10 minutes the problem will be solved. To remove scales without a special device, you can use an ordinary spoon. It is better to choose the size of the spoon depending on the size of the scales and fish. A dessert spoon with a sharp edge works well for whitefish (a teaspoon for peled). It is better to brush with movements with slight pressure, from the tail to the head, slightly obliquely. There is only one way to cook uncleaned fish: by salting.