Garfish

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Fish

Sargan is an elongated fish, which is often popularly called an arrow. Previously, one could often come across the erroneous name of garfish as “needle fish”. Later, all the dots were placed in the species affiliation and now needle fish and garfish are two completely different species. Although, without knowing all the nuances, you can confuse them.

Origin of the species and description

Photo: Sargan

Any of the subspecies of garfish belongs to the garfish family. By the way, the most interesting is the variety of fish that also belong to this species. This includes both the quite typical saury and exotic tropical flying fish.

Belonging to the garfish is based primarily on the special arrangement of the head bones. First of all, the garfish is distinguished by the ossification of some cartilages, which explains, in particular, the immobility of the upper jaw. The digestive tract is not connected to the air bladder - this is another important species feature of garfish.

Video: Sargan

It should be taken into account that garfish are among the oldest subtypes of fish that have inhabited the waters of the World Ocean for many millennia. It is from them that many other species of garfish originate.

Although garfish belong to predatory fish, they cannot be classified as particularly dangerous or aggressive. It also cannot be said that garfish cause too much harm to other fish. More questions arise about the distribution of the species in the basin of the Black and Azov Seas, because in many ways these fish prefer large expanses of the ocean due to their overly active lifestyle. This may be due to the fact that the Black Sea garfish is smaller in size and does not exceed 60 cm in length, while other varieties can reach 1.5-2 m.

Interesting fact: The largest representative of the garfish, the crocodile, is dangerous to humans. It lives near coral reefs and can reach 2 m in length. At night, the garfish rushes towards the light of lanterns, developing such a speed that it can easily injure fishermen and even some boats. The name of the subspecies is due to the fact that the jaws of the crocodile garfish are very similar to the teeth of the crocodile itself.

Age and size

Life expectancy is up to 7 years. According to Wikipedia, the maximum length is up to 93 cm.

Israeli record

But, in November 2021, an Israeli amateur fisherman named Vyacheslav denied this information. The trophy, 107 cm long and weighing 1635 grams, was caught at approximately 9 a.m. on the rocks of the Sironit beach in Netanya. A huge garfish was tempted by live bait from. And here is a photo report about this beauty.

Record holder Vyacheslav with a catch

Trophy Garfish

Record size

Record weight

However, this is really a record, and the most common individuals are those reaching 70 - 75 cm and weighing up to 1.3 kg.

There is another exception, for example, in the tropics there lives a giant representative of the garfish - the crocodile, up to 180 cm in size.

Crocodile garfish.

Life expectancy is no more than 13 years. Mostly there are individuals from 5 to 9 years old.

Appearance and features

Photo: What a garfish looks like

The garfish has a remarkable original appearance, thanks to which it never goes unnoticed. At the same time, disputes often arise about its species, since the garfish can easily be confused with an eel. Most often, garfish are compared to needle fish.

All these comparisons are due to his distinctive appearance. The gar has a long, elongated body, slightly flattened at the sides. The jaws are also elongated and resemble large tweezers with sharp, well-developed teeth. If you look at the garfish from the front, you will notice that the jaws are strongly narrowed in front. This makes the garfish similar to sailfish and even to ancient lizards - pterodactyls. Although garfish cannot possibly be their descendants, a similar version is voiced in almost all sources. Often set with small, sharp teeth make this resemblance even more pronounced.

The pectoral and dorsal fins are located at the back of the body. Because of this, the flexibility of the garfish increases significantly. A lateral line stretches from the pectoral fin to the tail, which in representatives of this species is significantly shifted downward. The caudal fin is forked and small in size. The scales of the garfish are small and have a distinct silvery tint. In total, the body of the garfish has 3 different shades: the top of the back is dark with a greenish tint, the sides are gray-white, but the belly has a very light shade with silver.

The head of the fish at the base is very massive and wide, gradually narrowing towards the end of the jaws. Against this background, the garfish received a second unofficial name: arrow fish. The garfish's eyes are large and well-pigmented, which allows it to navigate perfectly even in low light.

Interesting fact: Garfish bones have a green tint. Because of this, in some countries they refuse to eat fish at all. In fact, it is completely safe, and this shade is simply associated with the presence of biliverdin in the body (a greenish pigment found in bile).

Distinctive features

The average size of a garfish can be up to 80 centimeters. Despite the narrow, elongated mouth, it holds prey very tenaciously with sharp jaws. Belongs to the subclass “ray-finned” and the superorder “true teleosts”.

According to the photo and description of the gar fish, it is characterized by the following features:

Thin, medium-sized scales with smooth edges
There are no spiny rays on the fins
Has a gray-bluish color
The dorsal and anal fins are identical in shape, close to the tail
Bones are green due to a special pigment called biliverdin.

Although biliverdin appears unpleasant in the photo of garfish, it is absolutely safe. Pigment is formed as a result of the breakdown of blood cells in the brain. The bony part is never eaten, so there is no need to worry.

Where does the garfish live?

Photo: Gar fish

In total, there are about 25 subspecies of garfish. Depending on which one is being considered, the habitat will also differ.

It is customary to generalize all fish into genera and divide them into 5 different ones:

European. The most common species, which is not located in one place - it is characterized by constant seasonal migration. In summer it comes to the North Sea to replenish lost food. With the arrival of autumn, the fish move to the region of North Africa, where it is warmer;
Black Sea. Despite the name, it is found, in addition to the Black Sea, also in the Sea of Azov;
ribbon-shaped. It prefers exceptionally warm water, so it lives only near islands. Sea estuaries and estuaries are also among its favorite habitats. It is impossible to single out any clear area - banded saran is found in different areas of the World Ocean;
Far Eastern. Most of the time it lives off the coast of China. In summer, it often approaches the Russian Far East;
black-tailed (black). Found near South Asia, it tries to come as close to the shore as possible.

By the way, garfish cannot be completely classified as marine fish. There are also species that prefer fresh water from rivers. These are most often found in the rivers of India and South America, preferring a tropical climate. Based on this, we can draw conclusions: the garfish does not have any clearly defined habitat boundaries.

Fish can be found almost everywhere, its species will just be different. Sargan prefers to be closer to the surface of the water or in its thickness, but avoids too great depths or shallows.

Now you know where the gar fish is found. Let's see what she eats.

Lifestyle

Predator, stays in groups. Pelagic fish, that is, they live in the water surface. Found in waters of varying degrees of salinity, it can swim into fresh water bodies.

4.1 Reproduction - time and characteristics of spawning

The fish reaches sexual maturity in 1 year at the age of 4–5 years. The spawning period lasts from May to August. Fish spawn near the shore. The eggs have adhesive threads that attach to marine vegetation. A favorable temperature for egg ripening is considered to be above 10 degrees. Sargan is capable of producing on average up to 15 thousand eggs, larger representatives - up to 50 thousand. The larvae swim in coastal areas on the surface of the water. The difference from adults is the structure of the jaws - shorter. During the first year of life, they acquire the elongated structure usual for large fish.

4.2 Diet – what does garfish eat?

Small fish are the main food of garfish. Also eats crustaceans and insects.

What does a garfish eat?

Photo: Black Sea garfish

Invertebrates, mollusk larvae and even small fish are the main food for garfish. Schools of garfish begin to pursue young mullet and other potential prey all together.

But garfish are not always lucky enough to encounter such food on their way. That’s why small fish are a kind of delicacy for them that they don’t come across very often. The rest of the time, garfish have to be content with various kinds of crustaceans. They can also pick up large insects on the surface of the water. Garfish also move in search of food for various small sea inhabitants.

Their route can be divided into 2 large types:

from the water depths to the surface of the water. The arrow fish makes this journey every day;
from the coastal zone to the open sea - seasonal migration of schools of fish.

The gar can move very quickly, making wave-like movements with its elongated body. Also, if necessary, a garfish can easily jump out of its water to overtake its prey. By the way, in extreme situations, a garfish can even jump over obstacles. Unlike many other fish, garfish do not consume plant foods. Even in conditions of food shortage, he will not eat algae.

Interesting fact: The garfish moves simply by making wave-like movements with its body. This allows the fish not only to move at very high speeds, but also to jump out of the water. In some cases, garfish can reach speeds of up to 60 km/h in water.

Garfish and needle fish - same class, different families

There is a common misconception that garfish and needlefish are synonymous names for the same fish. Actually this is not true. The needlefish is a representative of marine fish of the needlefish family (order Stickleback). Its close relative is the seahorse.

The genus includes more than 50 species:

common pipefish;
Italian needlefish (other names: Black Sea needlefish, small needlefish);
spiny pipefish;
northern pipefish;
smallnose needlefish;
long-nosed pipefish;
thin-snout needle fish and others.

A timid small fish (maximum length 30 cm), unlike the predatory garfish, it is quite peaceful. She doesn’t even have teeth: the basis of the needle’s diet is plankton, small crustaceans, and insect larvae. For most of the day, the fish either moves slowly near the bottom or stands almost vertically in thickets of marine plants, leaning on its tail.

The color of needles depends on the body of water they inhabit: usually yellow, green, reddish tones

The pipefish has an elongated tube-shaped mouth (snout) with a characteristic widening at the end.

Interesting fact! Fish, like a chameleon, can change color to suit their environment.

Needlefish live in the Black, Azov, Caspian, and Baltic seas, and enter the rivers and lakes associated with them. The sea long-snout needlefish is the object of hunting for tourists. It is caught by hand in coastal areas, dried and taken away as a souvenir.

Some species are freshwater. River needlefish is found in the Volga, the lower reaches of the Don, and some reservoirs (Kuibyshevsky, Volgogradsky, Rybinsky, Tsimlyansk).

Unlike garfish, needlefish has no commercial value. Because of its friendly disposition, attractive appearance and unpretentiousness, people like to keep it in an aquarium. The plump-cheeked pipefish is usually kept as a pet.

The fish got its name from its strongly protruding gill covers.

The freshwater fish looks beautiful: the body is green or brownish with contrasting transverse stripes, the abdomen is light with a black keel. Height does not exceed 20 cm, weight 5 g.

There is only one thing in common between the garfish and the needle fish: both belong to the class of ray-finned fish.

Features of character and lifestyle

Photo: Common garfish

Sargan is a predatory fish. The bulk of his habits and habits are associated with hunting. The garfish is not too picky in terms of prey, so it prefers to attack quickly and aggressively. Smaller species try to flock together to make it easier to attack prey and protect themselves from opponents.

But large individuals are more cunning: they hunt only themselves, preferring not to attack sharply, but to wait quietly for the prey in ambush. It perceives any other garfish in this territory solely as rivals and can engage in battle with them. Sometimes these clashes can even end with the stronger garfish eating the enemy.

Sometimes you can find garfish even in private collections. But you need to be prepared for the fact that garfish are very difficult to keep at home. This is a very capricious fish in terms of conditions, requiring highly qualified aquarists. Although in this case garfish do not grow large, they require a lot of living space, since the fish is accustomed to an active lifestyle.

In captivity, sometimes they can even eat their neighbors in the aquarium in order to increase their living space. Bloodworms, tadpoles and other live food are what you will need to feed the garfish. It is also important to control the temperature (up to 28 degrees) and acidity of the aquatic environment. You should also be extremely careful: the fish can jump out of the aquarium, injuring the owner. She can also harm herself by simply breaking her jaw.

By the way, the danger to the garfish’s jaws remains in the natural environment: the fish can often break them during the process of catching food, battles and other moments. Although the jaws are powerful, they are very thin, and therefore are the most vulnerable point of this fish. The life cycle is directly related to water temperature: garfish intuitively tend to those areas where it is warmer.

Interesting fact: Some types of garfish, in order to wait out the drought, burrow deep into the ground during low tides and wait for the water to return. This is typical for those garfish that prefer to come very close to the shore.

Lifestyle and habitat

The garfish is an indiscriminate predator. A high-speed attack is the main type of attack of this fish. Large species prefer solitude. Victims are waiting in ambush. Neighborhood with its own kind creates unnecessary competition in the feeding territory and threatens serious clashes, including devouring the opponent.

Species of medium and small sizes form flocks. The collective way of existence helps to hunt more efficiently and increases the chances of preserving one’s own life. Freshwater garfish can be found in home aquariums. But only qualified aquarists can boast of keeping such exotic fish.

At home, garfish do not grow more than 0.3 m, however, a school of silver arrow-shaped fish requires a large volume of water. It can show its predatory character and eat its neighbors in its living space.

When keeping freshwater garfish in an aquarium, it is necessary to monitor the water temperature and acidity. The thermometer should show 22-28 °C, the acidity tester should show 6.9...7.4 pH. The food of aquarium garfish corresponds to their character - these are pieces of fish, live food: bloodworms, shrimp, tadpoles.

The arrowfish also shows a passion for jumping when kept at home. When servicing an aquarium, it gets scared and can jump out of the water and injure a person with its sharp beak. Sharp, high-speed throws sometimes cause damage to the fish itself: it breaks its elongated jaws, similar to thin tweezers.

Social structure and reproduction

Photo: Garfish in the sea

Garfish become mature at the age of 2 years. Then the fish first goes to spawn. The total life expectancy is on average 6-7 years. Although there have been cases recorded when garfish in the wild lived up to 13-15 years.

The fish go to the seashore to spawn. Spawning time depends directly on the habitat of the fish. In the Mediterranean Sea, the start of spawning is March, but in the North Sea it is May. That is, in general, garfish go to spawn when the water warms up enough. But it should be borne in mind that in the future, any weather conditions (changes in temperature, water salinity level) will have virtually no effect on spawning, which can last for many months. According to statistics, its peak occurs in mid-summer. Even if some conditions are unfavorable, this will not change the situation in any way and the garfish will in any case lay eggs as usual.

In order to lay eggs, an adult female garfish comes closer to algae or rocky areas. The female can lay eggs to a depth of 1-15 m. On average, from 30 to 50 thousand eggs are laid at a time. Garfish eggs are very large - they can reach 3.5 mm in diameter and also have a spherical shape. To securely attach to the surface of algae or underwater rocky structures, adhesive threads are evenly distributed on the secondary shell of the egg.

The fry is formed very quickly - it usually takes about 2 weeks. Young garfish are born mainly at night. The newborn fry is 1-1.5 cm in length and is almost completely physically formed. The gills are fully functional, and the well-developed eyes allow them to navigate freely even in low light. The caudal and dorsal fins are the worst developed at this age. At the same time, the garfish still moves well and quickly.

The color of the fry is brown. Its nutrition is provided by the yolk sac - this allows the fry not to feel the need for food for 3 days. Next, the fry begins to feed on mollusk larvae on its own.

Reproduction and lifespan

To spawn, garfish choose secluded corners among reefs and underwater vegetation, staying close to the coast. 5-year-old males and 6-year-old females begin to reproduce. This is the age of puberty. Older fish, of course, also participate in mating games.

Females lay eggs several times with an interval of 2 weeks. Having started in April, spawning ends only in August.

Algae is needed not only to camouflage eggs. The capsules are attached to plants using adhesive threads. Garfish eggs are placed close to the surface.

Arrowfish are born one and a half centimeters long and have short jaws. The nose lengthens as the animal grows.

In an aquarium, garfish live up to 4 years. Accordingly, this is the age of freshwater arrows. In their natural environment, they live up to 7 years, starting to spawn earlier than marine species. They live up to 13 years.

Natural enemies of garfish

Photo: What a garfish looks like

In nature, garfish have a lot of enemies. We are talking primarily about large predatory fish (tuna, bluefish). Dolphins and seabirds also pose a danger to garfish. At the same time, humans have recently become the most dangerous for garfish. Now the demand for garfish as a commercial fish is increasing, which is why the catch has increased significantly. Against this background, the population may decline significantly.

By the way, the garfish itself can also pose a danger even to people. At night, they are dangerous for divers because they easily catch the light of a flashlight and rush towards it. Strong jaws are quite capable of causing injury. But this applies exclusively to large varieties. Small individuals almost never risk attacking people. Being predators, they hunt exclusively small fish. And then, garfish often prefer to hunt in flocks rather than alone.

Natural enemies during the ripening period pose a much greater danger to garfish. It is the fry and roe of garfish that are most susceptible to attacks. Although adults carefully protect their offspring, many eggs and fry die before reaching puberty. They may also be negatively affected by natural factors during the migration process.

Interesting fact: Large species of garfish can cause harm to fishermen by rapidly jumping out of the water at high speed. Most often, this happens if a garfish is chasing prey or is trying to escape the chase.

Sargan scarf

This dish is especially loved by Crimean fishermen. Shkara consists of two layers of stewed onions, between which there is sea fish. Garfish is an ideal candidate for this dish. Let's try to prepare a “restaurant version”. For this, the garfish is filleted, the strips are rolled up, pinned with a toothpick, and fried in olive oil for literally 20 seconds to set. The wooden sticks are then taken away and a lemon stuffed olive is placed in the middle of each roll. In the usual “fisherman’s” version of the dish, you can skip this stage and simply clean and gut the fish, cutting it into pieces. Next, cut the onion into rings. There must be a lot of it. Moisten the bottom of the pan with vegetable oil and line it with onion rings. Place the fish on them (in the restaurant version, carefully place the rolls with the olive facing up). Salt and sprinkle with pepper and herbs (rosemary and marjoram). Top with three shavings of very cold butter - not too much. And cover the dish with onion rings. To help the stewing process, add a little water to the pan. Shkara should be stewed under the lid for 20 minutes.

Garfish diet

It feeds mainly on smaller fish, as well as invertebrates, including mollusk larvae.

Schools of garfish are chased by schools of other fish, such as sprat or European anchovy. They can prey on small sardines or mackerel, as well as crustaceans such as amphipods. On the surface of the sea, arrow fish pick up large flying insects that have fallen into the water, although they are not the basis of the diet of garfish.

Arrowfish are not too picky about food, which is the main reason for the well-being of this genus for a couple of hundred million years.

In search of food, garfish, following migrating schools of small fish, make daily migrations from deeper layers of water to the surface of the sea and seasonal migrations from the shores to the open sea and back.

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Description

Garfish has a memorable appearance and description. This fish is difficult to confuse with any other representative of the ichthyofauna, although there are some similarities with barracuda, eel or needle fish, but it has nothing in common with them in behavior and habitats.

The body of the garfish is elongated, arrow-shaped, narrow and thin. It is covered with dense small cycloid pearlescent light scales. The lateral line runs almost along the belly. There are no spiny fins, the anal and dorsal fins are located almost at the very tail.

The jaws are elongated, resembling a beak. They contain many small but very sharp teeth that can securely hold prey. The eyes are medium in size and located closer to the forehead. The back is dark, the sides and belly are silver.

Note! The Pacific garfish differs from the Black Sea garfish by the presence of a long bluish-blue stripe running through the entire body.

The average size of an adult is 65–75 cm with a body weight of 500 to 800 grams. Sometimes you come across specimens under 90 cm and weighing about 1.2–1.3 kg. In rare cases, it is possible to catch trophies measuring a meter or more in length, but taking such prey is considered an incredible success.

Garfish have small sharp teeth

Garfish are capable of moving very quickly, especially during hunting. At the same time, you can observe how the fish jumps out of the water in pursuit of the fry, trying to escape the chase. There have even been cases where fishermen in a boat were injured from a collision with a jumped-out predator.

The garfish reaches sexual maturity in the fifth to seventh year of life. Unlike most fish, this underwater resident goes to spawn from August to mid-autumn. An adult female is capable of laying up to thirty thousand eggs, much depends on weather conditions, her age and specific habitat.

Spawning of garfish takes place in the coastal zone at shallow depths. The fish chooses areas with the presence of filamentous algae. It is this kind of vegetation that serves as a “shelter” for eggs, which are attached to them and held until maturity.

A garfish egg weighs 3–5 grams. It has several thread-like branches. Under favorable conditions, they mature within two weeks. In bad weather, this process can take up to a month. After which a juvenile arrowfish appears at the count.

Reference! The largest garfish lives in the tropical parts of all oceans. Called crocodile or giant. Can reach sizes up to 6 kg.

The young garfish does not look like an adult fish. It has less elongated jaws, which change with age. As a rule, juveniles acquire all the characteristic features of the species after reaching a year and a half. From this moment on, it leaves the coastal shallows, going to deep areas.

Needlefish

Population and species status

Needlefish have no commercial value for humans; they are used as souvenir fishing objects. Lack of catching does not affect the decline in fish populations.

Some species are vulnerable to adverse environmental conditions. Thus, thick-snouted and thin-snouted needlefish are included in the Red Book of Ukraine and have the status “Vulnerable”. The reason is water pollution.

To preserve fish with this status, fishing is prohibited, and a reserve regime has been established in the discovered habitats.

Black Sea garfish

The Black Sea fish garfish is most often called the godwit or snout fish. The green garfish with a black stripe on the back, no more than sixty centimeters long, are inhabitants of the Black Sea year-round.

In the neighboring sea, these fish can only be found in the spring and summer.
They arrive on the Crimean coast in the fall and live there until the first winter cold.
The lifespan of a garfish is from 17 to 19 years.
A fish can be considered an adult when it reaches the age of five.
Garfish spawn on the Black Sea coast from April to mid-autumn.
The lifestyle of the Black Sea garfish is no different from other varieties of the breed.

They catch garfish with a net or a fishing rod; there are a great many recipes for cooking, because the fish has beneficial properties.

The market price for a kilogram of garfish varies from four hundred to seven hundred rubles.

Care and maintenance

The pipefish moves vertically and requires a lot of space to swim. The volume of the aquarium for it must be at least 150 liters. To observe the birth of fry, you need to purchase a pair. However, babies in aquarium conditions die in most cases. Juveniles are particularly picky about food and feed only on zooplankton.

The fish are peaceful; in the aquarium next door there can be both large and small fish that will not decide to eat the needle.

It is necessary to pay attention to the conditions for live needle food. For a longer life of artemia and nauplii, it is recommended to add one tablespoon of sea salt per 10 liters of water.

Attention!
Species that live in fresh water do not need the addition of sea salt.

There are also more exotic types of needles. For example, Microphis deocata (rainbow freshwater pipefish) lives in clean water bodies of India. The unusualness of the fish lies in the appearance of the males. When meeting a female, their brood pouch opens up like a sail decorated with bright stripes. Under normal conditions, the bursa folds up and looks like a narrow, colored membrane on the abdomen.

The rainbow needle is difficult to transport. In captivity, it is difficult to find suitable conditions for it, so only professionals should purchase this type of fish.

The needle fish is very friendly towards humans and does not consider them an enemy at all.

Water parameters

Experienced aquarists recommend choosing an “old” (long-salted) aquarium.

Optimal parameters for common pipefish:

temperature - 24-28 degrees;
density - 1.023-1.028;
pH - 5-7;
dH - 5-15.

Acidaceae combines several genera. Environmental conditions for the most popular aquarium species may vary:

Philippine microphys (Microphis brachyurus). In a community aquarium, they can remain hungry because they eat very, very slowly. pH - 7-8, dGH - 12-18, temperature - 24-28C.
Large needle (Microphis boaja). Water temperature - 22-26C, salinity - 1-20%.
African freshwater pipefish (Syngnathus ansorgii). Requires a large amount of vegetation that can comfortably tolerate brackish water. pH - 7-8, dH - 10-25, temperature - 24-28C.
Syngnathus pulcellus. Salinity - 1-5%, dH 8-15, pH - approximately 7, temperature - 25-28C, in colder water there is a risk of illness.
Black line pipefish (Syngnathus nigrolineatu). dH 15–30, pH 7–8, temperature - 18-20C (lives in cold water), salinity as required - 1-10%.

Comfortable conditions in the aquarium are created based on the natural habitat of the fish.

Lighting

Too much light causes algae blooms. Darkness and light should alternate, repeating natural living conditions. When the lamp is constantly on, fish feel discomfort and may lose their ability to reproduce. The optimal duration of the photoperiod is 13 hours. For convenience, lighting fixtures with automatic switching on and off are purchased.

The optimal volume of the aquarium is 300 liters

Vegetation

For needles, the presence of lush vegetation is important. In their natural environment, most species choose grassy areas for their habitat.

Note!
Needles feel comfortable if there are several clumps of caulerpa algae or other floating plants in the aquarium.

Pipe fish move slowly and constantly search for various larvae and crustaceans in the ground. They love to hide, so if they provide suitable support, aquarists will be able to enjoy observing the behavior of unusual fish. In a static position, the fish cling to plants and corals with their tails. It is possible to use artificial algae.

Priming

Coarse sand is poured onto the bottom of the aquarium. If it is possible to take soil from its natural habitat, then the fish will quickly adapt to new conditions. Species that live in corals will do better in coral sand.

Decor

To make the needles comfortable in the aquarium, it is necessary to create many spacious shelters in the form of grottoes, stone crevices and corals where the fish can hide. At the bottom you need to install several live stones. In addition to their decorative function, they will become a habitat for various small crustaceans.

It is especially important to have a sufficient number of shelters for fish that are housed with neighbors.

Nutrition

The tube-shaped snout allows it to suck in prey along with the water flow from a distance of 4 cm. In its natural environment, the needlefish feeds on small planktonic crustaceans. The fry, being in the father's pouch, feed from his circulatory system. After separation from the male, they initially feed on zooplankton.

Spinefishes hunt almost all the time. When keeping fish in an aquarium, it is necessary to ensure that cyclops or small daphnia are always in the water. Fish often refuse to eat chopped tubifex.

Aquarists note that in the absence of prey, needlefish quickly lose weight and may die. Difficulties with feeding often arise with fish caught from natural conditions. Fish raised in an aquarium quickly adapt to new food. Over time, they begin to eat highly chopped meat of mussels, shrimp and squid.

Adults prefer fish, frogs, shrimp, tadpoles, nauplii, planktonic crustaceans

Reproduction

The male quickly finds the female and attracts her with a kind of long dance. Eventually, the female wraps herself around the male and deposits her eggs in a leathery pouch on his abdomen. It happens that the caviar is placed in a special groove. For fertilization, the male receives several portions of eggs, 15-20 pieces each. Spawning can last several weeks; in total, one female transfers approximately 100 eggs to the male during the season.

The serpentine pipefish does not have a pouch. The eggs are attached to the male's abdomen and are not protected.

The eggs are kept in the bag until the fry hatch. Often they do not leave the bag for some time. Periodically, the male “walks” his cubs. He bends his body so that the bag can open. However, when danger threatens, the fry return to their father. The eggs receive nutrition from the blood vessels of the father.

Sex differences

Dimorphism in needle fish is weakly expressed. Their appearance is similar; males are often several centimeters shorter than females. The main difference is the structure of the reproductive system.

Males of most species have a special pouch for carrying eggs. Males of some varieties do without such folds and carry eggs on their abdomen. In this case, future offspring are more vulnerable to enemies.

The spawning period for needlefish begins in mid-spring

Making a fragrant bouquet

An orange peel, cut into large pieces, a bay leaf, seasonings for fish, peas are wrapped in gauze. The gauze bag prepared in this way is tied and placed in the vegetable mixture, which is in a cauldron. This makes it possible not to catch spices from the soup later, so it will turn out transparent and beautiful.

The fish is cut into pieces and transferred to a cauldron, boiled for twenty minutes. As time passes, the bag of spices is pulled out. The seafood is cleaned, washed and added to the soup, boiled for five minutes. Greens are added to the finished dish. The soup is traditionally served with croutons (white bread croutons) and Rui sauce.

From the editor: Barbus four-line

Compatibility and natural enemies

Needles are calm and peaceful fish. They feed on small crustaceans and plankton and are not interested in others. They can escape from a predator only through camouflage. Sharing games with predatory and very restless fish is not allowed.

Attention!
Peace-loving species of any size are suitable for living together. In this case, it is better to choose ornamental invertebrates for which needles do not pose any danger.

In their natural habitat, many animals and some insects pose a danger to needles. Aquarists have noticed that an interesting swimming beetle is capturing needlefish and gutting it.

The main causes of disease are poor quality water and feed.