Sinets: not everyone can catch this fish

- a representative of the bream genus, the carp family. The bluefish has a body that is strongly compressed laterally and is more elongated in length than that of the bream. Unlike the latter, the bluegill has smaller scales and a longer anal fin. In addition, he has a retractable, semi-upper mouth. The blue-eye differs from the white-eye by its pointed snout and smaller scales. The blue fin's caudal fin has a deep notch and its lower blade is longer than the upper one. The body of the blue wolf is dark silver in color. The back is dark blue, the sides and ventral part of the body are silver. The dorsal and caudal fins are gray with dark ends, the pectoral, ventral and subcaudal fins are slightly yellowish with dark edging along the edges.

Description

Bluefish
The body is elongated, strongly compressed laterally, less tall than that of bream. The caudal peduncle is very short. The caudal fin is strongly cut, its blades are pointed. The dorsal fin is high, the anal fin is long. The general coloring is light, typically pelagic: dark back, part of the body is blue (hence the name - blue), light sides, white belly. In sexually mature males, small tubercles appear on the sides above the anal fin. The mouth is terminal, the snout is pointed and raised. The eyes are large.

Reaches an age of 9-10 years, a length of 45 cm and a weight of 600 g. In Karelia, the age limit is 19 years, the usual size in catches is 19-24 cm, and the age is 5-7 years. The bulk of fish caught in the Saratov Reservoir does not exceed a length of 25-35 cm. It grows quickly only in large reservoirs; in rivers it grows slowly. Fishing in the fall is the best period for catching this fish.

Features of reproduction

The individual reaches sexual maturity at 4 years of age. By this time, it has a size of up to 18 cm. For spawning, blue salmon requires that the reservoir warm up to 9 °C. In different bodies of water it occurs at different times.

In the southern regions, spawning begins in mid-April. The further north the spawning habitat is, the later the bluefish lays its eggs. For example, in mid-latitudes, spawning may begin only in June. During this process, the fish form large schools.

Males at this time acquire an unusual appearance, which demonstrates to females their readiness for spawning. Small dark spots appear on their fins, and the scales located near the anus are covered with characteristic large flattened warts.

The bluegill spawns at the same time. This process may take 1-2 weeks. During this period, the female, depending on age and size, lays from 4 to 100 eggs.

The caviar of this fish has a beautiful pink or orange color. The size of each egg ranges from 1 to 1.5 mm.

A stem of aquatic vegetation is selected for the site of future laying, which is why bluegill can spawn only in shallow water.

The time the fry appear depends on weather conditions and can be 1-2 weeks. They spend the first 7 days on algae leaves, to which they firmly adhere. During this period, their diet consists of the contents of the gallbladder. Once they reach the age of one week, they can find their own food.

Lifestyle

Adult bluefish feed on zooplankton (small crustaceans and mollusks), as well as worms, insect larvae and parts of aquatic plants. The bluefish itself is food for large predators: catfish and pike.

Males reach sexual maturity at three years, and females only in the fourth year of life. Spawning takes quite a long time. It starts in early May and ends in mid-June. At the beginning of spawning, the water temperature is 8 degrees. The spawning period ends when the water warms up to a temperature of seventeen degrees. For such a responsible action, the bluefish chooses shallow areas with a depth of no more than fifty centimeters with underwater vegetation. Spawning occurs mainly in flooded areas.

One female lays up to fifty thousand eggs. In artificial reservoirs, a significant part of the eggs perishes due to water discharge. The eggs are relatively large, up to 1.5 mm in diameter. The eggs are pale orange in color and adhere to submerged vegetation. The incubation period lasts up to one and a half weeks. It depends on the water temperature. The warmer the water, the shorter the incubation period. The hatched larvae are about five millimeters long and periodically float to the surface of the water for several days, then sink again and attach to flooded vegetation. After six days, the larvae are able to obtain their own food. At the end of the first year of its life, the young bluebird reaches a length of six centimeters.

In summer, the bite begins immediately after spawning and ends in late autumn. Usually the bluegill stands near thickets of aquatic plants, where it feeds in shallow water.

During the day, in hot weather, it moves to deep places and waits out the heat. After sunset he approaches the shore again. In summer, any animal bait is suitable: dung worm, maggot, bloodworm. The best result is obtained with a “sandwich” - maggots and bloodworms on the hook. In winter, active biting begins immediately after freezing.

Nutrition

Bluefish mainly feed on small crustaceans. But in rivers it can eat benthic organisms - benthos. It is worth clarifying that in some reservoirs juveniles also feed on bottom organisms.

Large individuals eat crustaceans throughout the year, which can be found in the water column and in thickets. The predominance of certain organisms in the diet of fish in different seasons of the year is determined by the activity of development of their groups.

The basis of nutrition for adult fish are crustaceans; insect larvae and pupae, as well as plants, are of less importance for it. It feeds on the latter, in particular algae, at a time when it lacks planktonic crustaceans.

Distribution and habitats

Habitats of blue bream
Europe from the Rhine east to the Urals.
Rivers and lakes of the basins of the North, Baltic, Black and Azov seas (from the Danube to the Don), Volga, Ural. The northern border of the range runs through South Karelia; it is found in Syamozero and other lakes of the Shuya River basin, as well as in Vodlozero. Bluefish have also been recorded in the Arkhangelsk region (Onega River basin). It is found in Volkhov, Ilmen, the southern part of Lake Ladoga, Neva, Narova, in the southern parts of Finland and Sweden. In the Volga basin - from the lower reaches to the upper reaches, abundant in reservoirs, present in Uglich and Ivankovsky, most numerous in Rybinsk; but he is not in the Moscow region. Available in White Lake. Not recorded in the upper reaches of the Kama, Vyatka and Shoshma, it was rare in the Middle Kama, but after the formation of the Kama reservoirs its number increased slightly. In the Lower Volga it is represented by residential and semi-anadromous forms.

Where does it live?

Bluefish is a schooling fish that can be found in many medium and large rivers, lakes and reservoirs in Russia. Depending on weather conditions and even time of day, the location of the fish changes.

The fish is most often found in the water column, but at dawn it likes to come to the very surface. This behavior is observed only in summer and late spring.

The bluefish loves great depth. On a reservoir, it sticks to similar areas, regardless of the horizon. It is desirable that the depth be combined with a large amount of vegetation, where the fish will have a sufficient amount of food. Lowland rivers with a muddy bottom meet this requirement.

Most often, fishing for this fish is successful in the rivers of the Baltic, Azov and Black Sea basins, but it can also settle in lightly salted parts of the sea itself. The mouths of rivers such as the Ural and Volga are characterized by the largest amount of blue blue.

Bluefish fishing

Bluefish bite most actively from late June to mid-October with the onset of autumn water cooling. The gear for catching it should be lightweight, mainly light and medium-weight wire fishing rods and summer bottom fishing rods. The former's fishing rods, 2-2.5 m long, are equipped with a reel, fishing line 0.25-0.3 mm thick, leashes 0.1-0.15 mm thick and hooks No. 4-5, and the short fishing rods of the latter are equipped with the same tackle with a sinker , but without a float.

To catch bluegill, the same baits, complementary foods and baits are used as for silver bream, white-eye and small bream. However, its favorite bait and complementary foods in the spring and early summer are crushed worms, maggots and bark beetle larvae, in the fall - various worms, maggots and bloodworms. The best bait is small earthworms, meat of small mollusks, insect larvae, lumps of young green filamentous algae, and sometimes bloodworms and maggots.

The bites of bluegill are almost the same as those of silver bream and white-eye, but still, despite the obvious caution, they look bolder. The greatest differences in the bites of bluegills appear when fishing for them in the wire at different water flows. So, in a weak current, the signal for hooking is even a barely noticeable immersion of the float in the water (the fish tries to grab the bait), after which the float usually makes a roll towards the rod (the bait is in the fish’s mouth), and then accelerating movements begin in the direction of the fish leaving. The hook must be instant and short - with just a movement of the hand, otherwise the bluegill will have time to remove the bait from the hook and leave. In a fast current, the bluegill bite looks different: the float first gives a large roll and slowly sinks into the water.

When fishing with bottom rods with a roll, the bite of the bluegill is decisive and bold, because when it sees a moving worm bait at the bottom, it tries to grab and carry it away as quickly as possible. Such haste is often accompanied by self-hooking fish. This is also facilitated by the free pulling of the leash and fishing line through the hole of the sinker - it does not alarm the bluegill, and the very first bite often turns out to be fatal. When hooked, fish offer little resistance when fished out and, as a rule, become prey for the fisherman.

Gear used

Let's start the story about tackle for bluegill with a nodding fishing rod. It can be the most common one that we are used to using for perch, or it can be a “garland”. The second option turns out to be more effective if we remember that in winter schools of this fish are arranged in the form of a pyramid. This fishing rod is equipped with several jigs, which are mounted on a fishing line one above the other. The “garland” is closed with a sinker, or the heaviest jig. The distance between the jigs should not be less than 10 cm. It is this distance that allows the baits to look most attractive.

When fishing for bluegill, many fishermen prefer a float rod, considering this method the most interesting. If you choose fishing with “reining”, then the most convenient length of this fishing rod is just over two meters. An inertia-free coil would be quite appropriate in this case. Using a leash on such gear is up to each individual fisherman. Some people do without it, while others consider it an important attribute of equipment.

If you prefer a bottom fishing rod, then you should consider an option such as a tackle equipped with a rubber shock absorber. Its convenience lies in the fact that, having caught a fish, you can quickly re-equip the hooks and return them to their original place. This is important, given that the bluegill does not move far from the feeding site, and re-casting the fishing rod within a radius of four meters is most often quite problematic. The nature of the fishing of this tackle is not capable of spooking cautious fish, if the hook is carried out correctly, since it occurs without sudden jerks. The only drawback of this gear is its low sensitivity. Therefore, the fisherman needs to gain some experience. But where will it come from if you don’t make mistakes and don’t celebrate successful moments?

Blueberry in cooking

Blue meat does not have any valuable gastronomic qualities. It is prepared in the same way as bream: salted, dried, fried and added to the fish soup along with other fish. However, it should be noted that when lightly salted and dried, bluefish are tastier than bream - its meat is more tender and fattier.

Previously, at the beginning of the last century, bluefish had commercial importance. According to some reports, up to 20 million pieces were caught per year, but now its numbers have decreased so much that it is not specially harvested; bluegill often goes along with bream.

What does it eat?

The diet of the blue bream includes a wide variety of foods. He eats food of both animal and plant origin. His preferences depend on the time of year and the specific characteristics of the reservoir. Knowing this, anglers adapt to fishing conditions and select the most suitable baits.

The bluebird eats the following food:

• benthic invertebrates;
• small crustaceans;
• zooplankton and benthos;
• larvae of semi-aquatic insects;
• various plant components entering the water.

The bluefish eats a lot, actively moving around the reservoir in search of food. The greatest appetite of fish is observed in the post-spawning period, in July, October - November and at the end of winter after the last ice.

Taste qualities of fish

Bluefish meat has a very pleasant taste. A characteristic feature of this fish is the abundance of bones in it. To make the fish appear less bony, it is cooked longer , and before frying, many small cuts are made on the back. Thus, the bones are thoroughly fried and become less hard.

The meat of this fish contains many useful substances, vitamins and minerals, thanks to which it is once again regaining its position as a valuable species of commercial fish. In addition, it is very nutritious. Often used to make fish soup and baked in the oven. Dried bluefish is also very tasty.

What to fish with

The nutritional characteristics also suggest the choice of optimal baits for catching bluegill.

The best baits for representatives of this species are:

• earth and dung worms;
• steamed pearl barley or wheat;
• bloodworm;
• canned corn;
• boiled peas
• maggot;
• caddis larva;
• bark beetle larva;
• various variations of the test;
• bread crumb.

To catch bluegill, use the usual baits for carp fish, including mastyrka and semolina.

In winter, bluegill can be caught using reelless jigs. In this case, the most catchy ones are considered to be small, actively playing models such as:

• devil;
• goat;
• Uralka;
• oatmeal.