Ancient inhabitants of the rocky coast. CM. Kochetov. African Great Lakes Cichlids Mangrove Ecosystem
Wandering along the coast, you probably noticed a bluish slimy film on the water, rocks and piers. Off the coast of the United States, "mermaid hair" is often found - dark, fleecy, like felt, algae that covers stones and piles. These blue-green algae are the simplest, most primitive of marine plants. Some algae belonging to this group are not at all blue or green, but orange or reddish in color. The Red Sea is so named because it is inhabited by blue-green algae - Trichodesmium erythraeum. Much smaller than its name, this plant blooms periodically; at the same time, huge areas of the sea acquire a yellow, orange, and occasionally red tint.
In temperate and tropical latitudes, in the lower layers of the intertidal zone to a depth of about 9 meters, you can find many varieties of green algae. The most common large, luxurious sea lettuce - Viva lactuca and Viva latissima. It reaches a length of 1.3 meters and grows just below the low tide mark. [Maximum measurements are given.] Also found here are the herbaceous, tubular Enteromorpha, the lacy, fluffy sponge-like sea moss Bryopis, the branching Codium, and the strange Penicillus algae called "water tassel."
Green algae.
To see most varieties of brown algae, you need to have diving equipment or a boat with a transparent bottom (the water, of course, must also be transparent). The scientific name of this class of algae - Phaeophyceae - means "shadow" or "crepuscular" plants. They grow at depths of about 30 meters near rocky shores at all latitudes - from the tropics to the polar countries. True, the cold waters of high latitudes are more to their liking.
Brown algae have over 1000 varieties, very different in size and structure. These include tiny, filamentous plants such as Ectocarpus, the 4.5-meter "water line" plant (Chorda), and giant kelp. The small sea palm (Postelsia) grows near the open west coast of the United States, where it has to withstand the impact of powerful surf. Masses of brown fucus, with their characteristic "berries" or air bubbles, color large areas of rocky intertidal zones north of central California and South Carolina.
Giant brown algae include the kelp or "devil's apron" (Laminaria), which reaches a length of 4.5-6 meters, the 30-meter sea gourd (Pelagophycus) and the 40-meter bubble algae (Nereocystis)1. The largest of all plants and the longest of algae, Macrocystis, sometimes attached to the bottom at a depth of 80 meters, and with its crown touches the surface of the sea. These sea trees form entire underwater forests, and under the dense canopy of their “trunks” with undulating “leaves” (thalluses) myriads of animals find food and shelter.
Rich stands of brown algae near the Pacific coasts are used for food, fertilizer and livestock feed. These plants have served as food for millions of inhabitants of the densely populated coastal regions of Asia and the Pacific Islands since time immemorial. Currently, the inhabitants of the mentioned areas eat about 100 varieties of these algae.
Brown algae, as rich in minerals as manure, has long been used fresh or half-ripe as fertilizer by farmers in Scotland, Ireland and France. Several factories have been built on the west coast of the United States to process these algae into fertilizer. Not so long ago, a dairy farm where seaweed made up 10 percent of the diet set a world record for milk production.
With increasing depth, brown and green algae are replaced by red algae from 1 to 130 meters long. They love dim light, which makes them an important food source for offshore dwellers. Distributed throughout the oceans, these plants are most often found in temperate climates and in the tropics. These are the most beautiful and amazing representatives of the marine flora, their color is bright and bizarre: orange, red, purple, olive, purple and rainbow.
Red algae.
The purple algae Porphyra looks a lot like sea lettuce. This flexible plant is not afraid of the impact of the waves of the surf. The natives of North America, the Indians, ate the alga Porphyra tenera, which is still found in abundance along the coast of America from California to the Gulf of Alaska. In the UK, the deep red Rhodymenia is readily eaten by cattle, and sheep even prefer it to grass and come down to the intertidal zone to feast on it. People consume this seaweed in its raw form; it is chewed like chewing gum or eaten with fish and butter. In many countries, it is poured with milk and served as a seasoning for stews.
Such shores are the best place to photograph the inhabitants of the littoral, as they have the richest variety of life forms, and, in addition, in this case, there are no problems typical for photographing on muddy and sandy shores. The best time to visit the rocky shores is in spring as the low shore is then open at low tide and the photographer has a rare opportunity to see and photograph the normally hidden life of the sea.
The most interesting thing for a photographer on the rocky shores is in the bays. On the rocky shores of these natural aquariums, you can usually find the richest set of living forms. Masses of brown algae such as bladderwrack (Fucus vesiculosus) and jagged wedge (Fucus serratus) can cover large boulders that are exposed at low tide. These large seaweeds are best shot in natural light, as flash usually causes unwanted, intense light reflections. Seaweed, which becomes available for photography at low tide, is best photographed on a bright sunny day with almost cloudless skies. A tripod can be used to obtain maximum depth of field at slow shutter speeds and small apertures. The presence of algae often indicates a change in plant associations near the coast. Using a wide-angle lens, one can demonstrate how one species replaces another as it approaches the shore. It would be good, showing a continuous cover of plants on rocks, to give close-ups of their interesting details, for example, air bubbles on certain fuchs.
On most rocky shores, a huge number of sea ducks "encrusting" rocks can be found, as well as molluscs, such as limpet (Patella spp) and littorina (Littorina spp). They can be photographed in a group, as well as alone close-up. When photographing organisms with a shell, natural light is best, as it emphasizes the striations and overall relief of the shell. To be able to take advantage of solar lighting, you need to select objects located in open places. If necessary, you can set up a tripod. Since some clams prefer shady areas, a flash may be necessary. The shaded sides of boulders or rock ledges often provide shelter for overgrown animals such as sponges.
The rocky shores are also rich in certain types of crabs. In temperate regions, they are quite small, rarely found, and you need to look for them in rock crevices or under boulders and large algae. In the tropics, the situation is completely different. In Kenya, as soon as night falls, the coral rocks are covered with many striped crabs; in the growing darkness, the rustle of the feet of crabs moving through the rocks is clearly audible.
During the day, thousands of these crabs can be seen under the ledges of the cliffs. The author took several photographs using a zoom lens and flash, and even a number of close-ups a few centimeters away using a 55mm lens.
The article describes the aquarium fish of the African continent:
the rivers of Congo, Nile, Malavia - Nyasa and Tanganyika
(translation)
The western and central part of the African continent is occupied by humid equatorial forests. The climate of Equatorial Africa is distinguished by constancy. Day after day it repeats: a cloudless morning, in the afternoon cumulus clouds gather, which in the afternoon pour downpours with a thunderstorm, and then comes an evening dawn decorated with dark cirrus clouds of all shades - from yellow to crimson. More water falls with rain than evaporates, so there are evergreen forests, many rivers, streams and streams, between which swamps, rates, just pits with water, puddles are scattered. Here, on the East African Plateau, the mighty Nile River originates, and the full-flowing Congo draws strength from numerous tributaries.
In oxygen-saturated, but cool for a warm climate and poor in organic matter, the water of rivers, the animal and plant world is predominantly poor. This is due to the fact that there is a rocky bottom, an insufficient number of food organisms and a strong current. In order not to lose each other at least during breeding, the male of a small kneria (loach) is forced to stick to the female with special suckers that have formed on his gill covers. The inner surface of the suction cup is embossed and helps the fish hold on tighter. If it were not for this, the turbulent stream would instantly scatter milk and caviar in different directions and the caviar would remain unfertilized.
A little lower, the current slows down, numerous tributaries increase the river. The waters of swampy tributaries are brown in color. Water hardness does not exceed 1-2 degrees. The bottom is covered with a thick layer of silt and half-decayed leaves. Such rivers are called "black". The water in them is sometimes so acidic that fish and plants avoid it, and only after a flood do green sprouts appear on the silt for a short time.
There are also "white" rivers. They flow in areas with clay soil, wash particles out of it and become cloudy yellow, reddish or whitish-gray. Water hardness in them is from 0 to 3-4 degrees. Due to pollution, such rivers are also sparsely populated.
In the middle reaches of the river there are many protozoans, copepods, insects, as well as fish, amphibians, waterfowl and animals. The vegetation on the swampy shores comes close to the water itself, the bowed branches of trees hanging over the water. Among the fish, good swimmers predominate. These are representatives of the Characin and Cichlid families. There are a lot of barbs in the rivers. Catfish live at the bottom. Flocks of flat knifefish stand head to the current under the flooded tree trunks, African glass catfish swim like ghosts.
On the sandy reaches of the Congo lives tetraodon miurus. This ball fish burrows into the ground right up to the eyes. Yellow-brown skin with dark dots is invisible against the background of the bottom. The body is angular, slightly swollen.
striped fish fakhaki distributed in Africa over a large area - from the source of the Nile to the Gulf of Guinea. They live in fresh and sea water. They form a large number of subspecies and local forms. Fahaki from Lake Rudolph are up to 6 cm long, while usually fish of this species are up to 40 cm long.
The bulk of the plants are hornwort, vallisneria, water fern, elodea. Riccia, pistia and duckweed float on the surface.
Continuous fields form along swampy shores and in river deltas nymphs. There are many kinds of them. They are also distributed throughout Eurasia, Africa and America. In our country, one of the types of nymphs is called white water lilies. Dozens of colored varieties of nymphs have been bred for breeding in ornamental ponds. The flowers are yellow, pinkish, light red, blue or slightly purple. In aquariums, the motley nymphaeum is common and popular. Its thin, wavy underwater leaves change color from green to green-purple depending on the light. Pale red or brownish-violet spots are scattered throughout the plate. The underside of the leaves is pink-purple. The leaves of the red nymph are red. Tropical water lily flowers open at midnight. Unlike our water lily, aquarium nymphs do not have a thick creeping rhizome, but a tuber is formed. They reproduce by lateral shoots.
In the shady forests of Africa, fern bushes grow in ponds bolbitis. Openwork, as if carved, dark green leaves of this fern depart from a creeping rhizome. Roots do not climb into the soil, but over time they can gain a foothold on the surface of underwater objects. Plant growth up to 30 cm. In the aquarium, it reproduces by dividing the rhizome.
Often found in aquariums anubias- small marsh plants with dense glossy leaves of ovoid and oval shape. The yellow inflorescence of anubias is shrouded in a white stripe. Anubias grow along the water's edge. Their leaves remain in the air, and the roots are immersed in soft soil. Anubias grow slowly underwater.
Clouds of mosquitoes fly above the water, and their larvae live in the water, they are collected with a wide mouth of fish - butterflies. With quick strong vibrations of the elongated rays of the caudal fin, they accelerate, jump out of the water and, spreading their huge pectoral fins, fly out two to three meters in pursuit of insects. Prey is also knocked down by splashes of water formed during the jumps of fish.
Near the bottom between plant stems and swim neolebias- fish of the characin-like suborder. They are 3.5 cm long. The back is olive-brown, in the male the sides are brownish-red, closer to the abdomen - yellowish. A dark stripe runs along the body, bounded at the top by a golden line. There is a dark speck at the base of the caudal fin. The anal fin is red with a narrow dark border. The tail and rectangular high dorsal fin are cream. Neolebias females are less brightly colored. A small adipose fin behind the dorsal, characteristic of most characinoid fish, is absent in neolebias. Their mouth is small, placed at the end of the head, so they need to choose food that is small in size. The temperature in the aquarium should be 20 ... 24 C. They breed in the same way as South American characin fish.
elongated, variegated, carnivores- also representatives of characin-like fish. In thickets of plants they hunt tadpoles, fry. At night, fagos are replaced by numerous ctenopomas - African labyrinth fish.
In addition to labyrinths, a number of perciformes are widely represented in African reservoirs by cichlids or cichlids. They are similar to labyrinths, but their body is a little more massive.
cichlids avoid strong currents and swamps. Many species are found in brackish waters of coastal waters and in estuaries.
By behavior, cichlid fish are territorial. Each male, and occasionally a female, occupies a certain area among dense thickets near a bush or a gap between stones; they get food at the bottom. Fish more than 5-6 cm long hunt for fry. largest African cichlids - tilapia dig up and eat aquatic plants.
In an aquarium, cichlids are best kept in not very fresh, but not in old water. 1 / 5-1 / 4 of the water is replaced every two weeks with settled tap water. Pots, snags, stone minks are placed at the bottom of the aquarium. Plants are placed so that thickets subsequently form. In fights for caches, the leader is determined - the owner of the largest site. Fish are fed with a variety of live food, herbal supplements. Fish often, willingly dig in the ground. Therefore, only good filters can ensure the purity of water.
In the forest lakes of Southern Nigeria live cichlids are parrots. The body of these fish is elongated. The male is yellowish brown with a blue or purple tinge. A black stripe runs along the body and diamond-shaped caudal fin. On the side, near the anal fin, there is a purple spot. The long dorsal fin is dark gray with a silvery or golden upper edge, and is spotted in some fish. The lower part of the caudal fin is gray, the upper part is pink, sometimes with a few spots. Pelvic and anal fins are blue. The body length of males is up to 9 cm. The body of the female is higher, fuller. The abdomen is fuller, rounded, purple. The golden stripe on the dorsal fin is wider, with one or two dark spots in the back. Gill covers purple, shiny. The body length is up to 7 cm. In all cichlids, depending on the condition of the fish, living conditions, time of day, the presence of a leader or a person of the opposite sex, the color changes. Frightened or resting parrots become discolored.
It is better to keep parrots in a flock in an aquarium with a volume of at least 40-60 liters. The water temperature should be 22 ... 24 C, hardness up to 10 degrees. To breed parrots, the water is partially softened and heated to 26 ... 28 degrees C. It is better to place a couple of fish in a separate aquarium with a flower pot. A hole is made at the bottom or side of the pot into which adult fish could swim. Under natural conditions, before breeding, fish dig a mink under a stone or snag. Aquarium fish thoroughly inspect and clean the pot. Such a ritual for a couple is simply necessary. At this time, their readiness for spawning is finally formed, the last restructuring in the body ends. Cleaning up a sand-filled hole in a pot together will strengthen the relationship between male and female.
After spawning, 120 reddish eggs remain inside the pot. All cichlids are worried about offspring. Parrots fan their eggs with their fins, peck eggs affected by bacteria. After three days, larvae appear that hang on the walls of the pot. After five days, they become fry, swim, feed on grated food - infusoria, brine shrimp larvae, "live dust". Producers have been inspecting their fry for a long time. During the day, small parrots swim near adult fish and eat small live food. If the family swims from place to place, then all the kids keep in a group behind the adult fish so as to see it from a certain angle, that is, the larger the fish, the farther the fry stay from it. If necessary, adult fish grind food for fry, grind worms, larvae, and insects. How long care should continue, the fry determine themselves, releasing odorous substances into the water. Feeling this smell, parrots parents rush to uninvited guests, do not swim far from their offspring.
No less concern for offspring is shown and distributed in Equatorial Africa. handsome chromis. Adult fish are best kept in pairs: in a common aquarium, they start deadly fights with fish of their own species and others. Handsome chromis in natural conditions are 10 cm long, in aquariums - half as much. Fish 7 cm long can breed.
Despite the exorbitant aggressiveness, many hobbyists keep these fish due to their very beautiful coloring. Their body is purple-red. On the fins are greenish-blue shining dots. On the gill cover, in the middle of the body and near the caudal fin, there is a black mark in the frame of blue highlights. In females, the front of the body is more golden.
Adult cichlids communicate with fry with the help of fin movements, various body postures. This is especially noticeable in the bright chromis of handsome men. So the fry gather under the female in a cavity dug at the bottom, when she quickly pulls her dorsal fin, then lowering it, then opening it. The blue glare of light disappears and flashes again. Fry, who did not notice the signal of the female, are picked up by the father. Examining every nook and cranny of its territory, the fish looks for babies and takes them into its spacious mouth. At the same time, the swim bladder reflexively shrinks in the fry, they become heavier than water and lie motionless in the mouth. They lie just as motionless in the nest.
And yet, no matter how worried the cichlids are about their offspring, they eat part of it after the end of the care period. It is simply necessary in nature to preserve the species. Preying on your own young is the only way to survive in a confined water that is not unique to cichlids. After all, fry feed on microscopic animal and plant foods that adult fish cannot eat.
Gunther's Pelmatochromis found in water bodies from Ghana to Cameroon. Males are 20 cm long (in captivity - about 10). The females are smaller. The body of the fish is high, the head is large. The coloration of the male is greyish-brown. Three dark stripes extend from the gill cover to the caudal fin. Gill covers with a blue metallic sheen. The pectoral fins are also blue, the other fins are grey. Dorsal fin with a bright red border, caudal fin with bright blue dashes. The coloration of the female is brighter. Brownish body, on the abdomen a large bright red spot. Gill covers are yellow with a blue tint. The pectoral fins are reddish blue, the rest are grey, the caudal fins are slightly blue. The upper third of the dorsal fin is golden, expressive black dots are scattered along the fin.
Gunther's pelmatochromis are aggressive towards other fish, especially during spawning. They can be kept with peaceful large cichlids and barbs. Water should be the same as for all fish of equatorial Africa: softened, not very fresh.
Preparing for spawning, the fish clean a flat stone with their thick lips and lay 150-200 yellowish-gray eggs on it. After fertilization, both the male and the female take the eggs into their mouths. The skin on the lower jaw is stretched to form a transparent bag. Through the skin, you can see how the fish constantly mixes the eggs, providing oxygen access to them, cleans the microorganisms from their shell. If only one of the parents incubates the eggs, the other should be taken out of the spawning ground because the fish is trying to take the eggs for itself. During joint gestation of eggs during feeding, Gunther's pelmatochromis transfer eggs to each other. At a temperature of 26 ... 28C, fry appear from the eggs in three days. Parents can no longer hold them in their mouths, and the fry spread out in search of food. Adult fish help them find insect larvae and worms in the soil, chew them and spit them out to fry. After another 3-4 days, parents are recommended to transplant. Young people are starting to eat on their own.
Comparing the number of eggs in different types of fish, you can see that the less they care about their offspring, the more eggs they lay. Ctenopomas, for example, are also labyrinthine, but do not build nests. The eggs, which are supported by a large fat droplet, float on the surface with the current and are dispersed by wind and waves. Caviar dies, falling into adverse conditions, it is eaten by birds, amphibians and insects. Fish for one spawning throw out tens of thousands of eggs. And this is far from the limit. Many species of marine fish living in the open ocean lay tens of millions of eggs. Only a few fish survive to adulthood, the rest die for various reasons. In fish that take care of their offspring, the amount of caviar is much less.
When parents or one of them bears caviar in the mouth, it practically does not die. All the larvae come out of it. So, Gunther's pelmatochromis has 150-200 eggs, and chromis has 80.
The branched river system forms, over time, numerous bays, oxbow lakes, parts of the channel cut off from the river. Old reservoirs begin to silt up, overgrow and turn into swamps. Each reservoir has its own characteristic composition of living beings, most adapted to life in it. So, in the rivers of Africa, especially its equatorial part, elephant fish live. They are well adapted to this. elephant fish have a proboscis on the lower jaw. The mouth opens at the end of the proboscis. With their proboscis, they get food from soft silt, which sometimes settles in the pits with a layer of several meters. Fish swim in complete darkness, so their eyes are small, they see poorly, they feel the surrounding objects with the help of dowsing. Two hundred times per second, a special muscle group on the caudal peduncle of the fish produces a weak electrical impulse. An electric field is created around the fish. An object that is nearby bends the field lines, and the fish feel it.
electric catfish gives out powerful electrical impulses that jam small fish, frogs, and other small aquatic animals. So, a catfish, moving relatively little, gets its own food.Among the catfish there are many interesting in structure and way of life. For example, catfish from the hairy mustache family have outgrowths and membranes on their mustaches. Like most catfish, they are nocturnal and rest during the day. Fish of two species of this family sleep during the day at the surface of the water with their belly up, so that it is more convenient to swallow air with their lower mouth. So that birds do not notice them on the surface, the belly of the catfish is black, and the back of the light is spotted. Also, turning over on their backs, they swim and collect insects from the surface.
Thousands of flocks live in closed reservoirs, streams, swamps and rainwater pits. African carp-tooth-like fish: epiplatis, afiosemion, rolofei. The main food of carp-tooth-like insects is insects flying over water, larvae and pupae of mosquitoes, small crustaceans. Small fish often become the only prey for cichlids and catfish in confined waters.
Fish of the great genus Afiosemion most often enter aquariums. Their body is cylindrical, slightly compressed laterally. The dorsal fin is moved back. The coloration of males combines almost all the colors of the spectrum. Often there is a geographical variability in the color of the species.
Afiosemion southern the same sizes. Lives in the coastal swamps of the Congo and Gabon. The coloration of the male is brownish-red, very dark, especially at night and during spawning. Behind the head, the scales are light blue with a green tint, shiny. Large red spots are scattered all over the body. On the elongated reddish-brown dorsal and anal fins there is a cherry stripe with a greenish-blue border on the dorsal and white on the anal fins. The caudal fin is lyre-shaped, with white or pale orange stripes below and above. The tips of the caudal and sometimes the anal fins end in white braids. In some waters, fish have a blue pattern on their tail.
Afiosemion females are colored inexpressively, in brownish and olive colors. Reddish or brownish small dots are scattered over the body and rounded transparent fins.
area aphiosemion bilane occupies a large area. He lives in stagnant ponds in forests and savannahs. The male is up to 6 cm long. The body is brownish-gray or reddish-brown. Numerous crescent-shaped spots on the scales merge into a red mesh. On the sides of the body, the scales have rows of small green dots with a metallic sheen. In fish from southwestern Nigeria, these dots are bronze. Two parallel black stripes stretch along the body, one strip passes in the middle through the eye, the other is slightly lower. The stripes are more pronounced in fish from the western part of the range and almost disappear in fish from the eastern part of the range. The stripes may turn pale or black depending on the conditions: during spawning, male fights, or from fright. The unpaired fins of the two-striped afiosemion are very long, especially the dorsal fins are orange with rows of black dots. The upper part of the dorsal fin is red-orange in fish from Nigeria or lemon yellow in Cameroon. A black and blue line runs along the edge of the dorsal fin. The anal fin is orange or light green at the base with a red stripe at the bottom. The shape of the caudal fin varies from round (Nigeria, Cameroon) to lyre-shaped with very long extreme rays. The upper part of the caudal fin is pale orange, the lower part is bright orange, the middle is covered with red spots or strokes. Pectoral fins are orange or yellow in fish from southwestern Nigeria and colorless in fish from the Niger Delta. The females of the two-striped Afiosemion are brownish, with a white abdomen and two longitudinal stripes on the body.
The maintenance of afiosemions is simple. They thrive in a low aquarium with a large surface area and lots of floating plants. From small-leaved plants for fish, it is necessary to create thickets where females and young males will hide. The coloration of fish will benefit more in dim lighting and a dark background.
The water in the aquarium should be old, peaty and, if possible, soft. Poorly African carp-tooth-like endure water blowing. The water temperature should not be higher than 21 ... 23C. The warmer the water, the faster these fish develop, age and die. Too warm water in natural reservoirs tells them that the reservoir is gradually drying up and it is necessary to leave offspring as soon as possible.
Afiosemions in natural conditions live in large flocks. The strongest male leads the pack. He is the first to swim up to food, has an advantage during spawning. If the substrate on which the fish lay their eggs is not enough, then the leader considers himself the only owner of it and fertilizes the eggs of all females. Other males at this time swim to the side and start fights among themselves. Establishing calm, the leader from time to time disperses the brawlers. If he is defeated by a young male, then the old one hides in the plants. For several days he will not eat, turn pale, and then stick to the pack like an ordinary member.
According to the method of spawning, afiosemions are divided into two groups: those that attach eggs to plants (southern and two-lane), and those that bury eggs in the soil (Gularis, Afiosemions filamentosum, Gardner, blue). Some species, Afiosemion Alya, for example, spawn on plants during high water, and in drying water bodies into the soil. For fish of the first group, a spawning ground of 10-15 liters with old water from a common aquarium is needed, several small-leaved plants are thrown there. A couple is planted for spawning, or, if the male is very active, then two females and males. The male in this case is replaced every 10-12 days. Spawning lasts several weeks, sometimes fish lay several eggs daily throughout their lives. With age, the number of eggs in females increases.
The substrate with glued caviar is transferred into flat vessels, where the water layer is 3-4 cm, the vessels are covered with glass. The eggs are yellowish or brownish, in some species with noticeable dark dots or reticulation. If the caviar dies, is affected by microorganisms, it is necessary to drop 2-3 drops of methylene blue per 1 liter of water into the spawning ground. At a temperature of 22 ... 24 C, after 12-18 days, larvae appear from the eggs. If the larvae cannot break the strong shell of the eggs, then fresh water should be added to the water, the vessel should be gently shaken, or a pinch of dry food or a few sugar crystals should be poured into the spawning ground. Bacteria will immediately appear in the water, which will break the shell of the caviar. From the first hours of life, small afiosemions feed. The larvae begin to feed on infusoria and "live dust". The larvae grow rapidly and reach a length of 3-4 cm in a month and a half, and after another month and a half they become sexually mature.
In the spawning ground for afiosemions, which lay eggs in the soil, the bottom is covered with a layer of boiled peat 2-3 cm thick. The fish bury their eggs with sharp blows of the tail. After spawning, the water must be drained to the very peat. The spawning ground is kept closed in semi-darkness at a temperature of 18 ... 24 C. After 15-20 days, the peat from the spawning ground is carefully filtered through a sieve, laid out on a newspaper to remove excess moisture, and placed in plastic or flat glass jars. In this state, caviar can be stored for 4 to 9 months. At this time, the development of the embryo stops. Under natural conditions, developmental delay - diapause occurs at a time when at times the reservoir begins to dry out. After the reservoir dries up, the caviar is stored in wet sludge. After rains or floods, soft water fills all the depressions again. The eggs come to life, development continues, but after a while it stops again. The embryo is already visible in the egg. Diapause occurs again due to lack of oxygen, which is absorbed in large quantities by decaying residues. The duration of the second period of calm is 6-8 months. The development of embryos continues only after the appropriate conditions resume in the reservoir, green plants appear. Then, with the first heavy rain, larvae appear from the eggs in 30-40 minutes. In captivity, the development of Afiosemion eggs is stimulated by infusion of soft water at a temperature of 18C to a level of 7-10 cm.
Notobranchius Rakhiv exported from the vicinity of the port of Beira (Mozambique). The glass-red body of 5-7 cm males is covered with blue spots on the scales. Dorsal fin blue-green, anal blue. The pattern consists of wide brown or black lines and streaks. The caudal fin has an intricate pattern of black, green and orange stripes. A wide blue ribbon runs along the edge of the transparent pectoral fins. The female is smaller, gray-brown.
After spawning of notobranchius, 50-60 small eggs remain, protected by a strong shell. From July to November, their cattle will trample along the roads, people will walk on them, the earth will become hard as stone and crack from the heat. But with the onset of rains, a new generation of notobranchius will appear in the water.
Entangled in the thick fur of animals, stuck to the paws of birds and amphibians, notobranchius eggs spread tens of kilometers from their pond. Sometimes birds carry them even into tree hollows where there is rainwater.
Africans tolerate drought otherwise. lung-breathing protopters. Their thick body seems to be naked because the scales are deeply hidden under a layer of mucus. Paired fins lost their rays and turned into some kind of elongated streams. With the onset of the dry period, the fish burrow into the soft silt at the bottom, curl up and cover themselves with a cocoon of mucus. Protopters breathe atmospheric air through a small hole in the cocoon. A day or two passes, and only a depression remains in place, covered with viscous silt and thick grasses. The protopter goes into hibernation. Local residents at this time dig them out with a shovel, looking for fish in small mounds with a conical hole at the top. In the cocoon of the protopter, you can transport and send. Once in the water, the cocoon gets wet, and an exhausted fish emerges from it. Wrinkles, bedsores, prints of their fins are visible on the body. Gradually, the protopter begins to move. After a long sleep, a number of metabolic products are released into the water through the gills, because for many weeks and months the protopter lived, breathed, and received energy from its own fat reserves. Protopters are harvested by locals for tasty meat.
Lakes Tanganyika and Nyasa are among the deepest lakes in the world. The greatest depth of Tanganyika is 1435 m, and Nyasi is 706 m.
The unique living conditions have preserved for tens of millions of years the animal world, which is found only here and nowhere else. Such living organisms are called endemics. More than 242 species of fish live in Lake Nyasa, of which 222 are endemic, in Tanganyika there are 190 species of 173 endemics.
The lakes lie close to the equator. Therefore, on the surface, the water temperature ranges from 23 C to 28 degrees C. As in most lakes, there are no strong currents and no mixing of warm water with cold water. On the border of waters there is a border of life and hydrogen sulfide asphyxiation. Hydrogen sulfide bacteria are the only living creatures in the deep part of the great lakes. They exist due to dead organic matter. Hydrogen sulfide bacteria do not need oxygen.
The main sources of water that feed the lakes are precipitation (1/3 of the annual inflow) and many large and small rivers that flow into them (2/3 of the annual inflow). In total for the year, this amounts to 72 km3 for Nyasa and 65 km3 for Tanganyika. Less than 1/20 of this amount of water flows from Nyasa to Shireya in the Zambezi and Lukugoya from Tanganyika in the Congo. The rest of the water evaporates. Consequently, the salt content here is quite significant for fresh water - 0.5-0.8 g / l. The active reaction of water is slightly alkaline.
Life in the lakes is unevenly distributed. The most populated in these lakes is the coastline, which is very indented near Nyasa, in many places stone cliffs come out to the water, they break off 5-15 m deep. Everywhere from minks, caves and depressions their owners look out - bright cichlids. Lake Nyasa Africans call Malawi, so Nyasa fish are called Malawian.
Melanochromis auratus 11 cm long. The body is elongated, cylindrical. The adult male is brown-black with two pale blue stripes along the upper body. Almost all fins are black. The long dorsal and edge of the caudal fin are yellow, and the edges of the anal and ventral fins are blue, opaque. The female is smaller, golden yellow with two black longitudinal stripes. The third stripe is on the dorsal fin. Anal and pelvic fins are blue.
Pseudotropheus zebra also 11 cm long, but its body is much higher. There are several color options for these fish, so it can be difficult to identify the species. Of course, zebras are blue with dark transverse stripes. Sometimes there are no stripes, and the body color is very light, milky blue. There are fish completely white or with a reddish-pink tint. Females sometimes have blackish, brown and orange spots on a blue or white body background.
Pindani 12 cm long. The oblong body and light blue fins. A dozen narrow dark stripes run across the sides. The anterior rays of the pectoral fins are milky white. In some places along the coast, Pindanis have a black stripe on their dorsal fin. Such a black stripe runs along the lower edge of the anal fin, which is decorated with ten to twelve yellow releasers. The female is very similar in color to the male, there are even releasers, albeit pale ones.
Pseudotropheus Lombardo 10 cm long have a pronounced sexual dimorphism (the difference between male and female). The male is orange, sometimes with several transverse dark brown stripes. The female is blue with black and blue transverse stripes on the body.
In Melanochromis Iogan females are yellow-orange, while males are dark blue, almost black, with two brilliant blue stripes along the body. Like all cichlids, the tips of the ventral, dorsal and anal fins of the male are longer and sharper than those of the females.
Their appearance has several dozen color options. We have described a small part of fish of two closely related genera - pseudotropheus and melanochromos. In the aquarium, these genera are represented by twenty species. Many of them are very similar in coloration. So, the male melanochromis Iogan can care for the orange male Pseudotropheus Lombardo, who reminds him of his female.
An indeterminate species of Malawians is given a temporary designation. For example, Pseudotropheus M7 means that it is the seventh Malawian (M) Pseudotropheus of indeterminate species. From time to time, scientists conduct revisions of the genus and give the fish a scientific name. So, under the name Pseudotropheus M7, petrotilapia, or mbuna kumva, was introduced, which in the local language means “the one that attacks the rock.” The name of the fish was given for surrounded by thick lips, jaws dotted with sharp teeth, with which it cleans algae from stones. Deprived of plant food, petrotilapia ceases to multiply and grow, gets sick and dies. Petrotilapias are up to 20 cm long. The mouth is wide. Males are bluish-blue with orange-scarlet strokes on the fins. Females are smaller, brownish-yellow, with dark transverse stripes on the body. The color of the fish is inexpressive and changeable. There are also golden colored specimens.
Long-bodied Labeotropheus the usual one is 12 cm long. It is distinguished by a large overhanging upper lip, for which it is sometimes called a fish - an ax. There are several options for coloring fish. Males and females are often blue with subtle transverse stripes. The dorsal fin is red-brown to orange in color. About half of the females are born with an orange-yellow body covered with red, black and blue spots. Very attractive coloration of orange females with a pink-red spot on each side scales.
Small (6-10 cm long) fish of the genus labidochromis are blue in all shades. The male blue labidochromis is whitish blue or light cobalt. A wide stripe on the dorsal fin, spots in the anterior part of the anal and ventral fins are black. All fins with milky white stripes - in front. The females are grey-blue. For liveliness of movements, brilliant coloring and small size of labidochromis, they are also called hummingbird cichlids.
Freiberg's labidochromis the male is light blue with wide transverse violet-blue stripes. Purple head and fins. The pelvic fins are black with a milky white first ray; there is a black spot on the anal fin. The female is smaller, gray-blue, without a pronounced pattern.
Like most other fish, Malawians choose a certain range of depths for their life, beyond which they try not to go. As the light decreases, algae disappear, so deep-sea fish feed mainly on mollusks and other invertebrates. Lost in the twilight and colors, first red, then orange, yellow, green. Blue and blue colors are the last to disappear. This is how deep-sea haplochromis are colored - blue with a metallic sheen.
Sandy beaches play an important role in the life of reservoirs. Wave after wave rolls onto clean wet sand. Water seeps through the grains of sand. Along the surf, organic and mineral water-insoluble substances are trapped by a layer of sand and decomposed by billions of invisible bacteria, amoebae, ciliates. Beaches are natural filters of lakes. In addition, rich food reserves are collected on the sandy shores, especially where the river flows into the lake. Rivers bring a lot of dead organic matter that settles in a layer on the bottom. About a quarter of the area of the river bottom is occupied by thickets of wallisneria, hornwort, elodea, and sometimes nymphs. Reeds and papyrus enter the water from the banks. In sandy biotopes, per 1 m 2 there are a hundred larvae of mosquitoes and crustaceans, a thousand shellfish (in plant thickets) and up to 10 thousand small mollusks (on clean sand). Flocks of herons and flamingos willingly visit the shallow water, which filter the water in search of food. Bird excrement becomes food for micro-organisms, supports the rapid growth of green algae, especially in the dry season, when small sandy islands and spits cut shallow water into separate reservoirs.
There are 16 species of cichlids here. Fish in shallow water, where there are no shelters, live in large flocks and have an inconspicuous, inconspicuous color. Of these, aquarists are only interested in Livingston's haplochromis, dolphins and Nyasa queens that live on the verge between sandy and rocky biotopes.
males Haplochromis Livingston blue - blue. The body and head are large, the lips are thick. The lower part of the body is brownish, the sides of the head with a blue-green sheen. The anal, dorsal and ventral fins have a white border. Light female, with brown spots on body and fins. Fish are 20 cm long.
The genus Haplochromis also includes the so-called dolphin fish. The name of the fish was given for the steep forehead of the male, whose fat pad increases with each spawning. Males are blue with a greenish tint on the sides. Four to seven dark blue stripes run across the body. Females are lighter in color, with two very pale black spots on the flank and reddish dots on the caudal peduncle. Body length 12-15 cm. Haplochromis constantly dig in the ground in search of food.
In flocks, along with others, mostly blue inhabitants of the sandy and rocky bottom, there is a fish queen of Nyasa. Blue and reddish colors are destroyed in her coloration. Males 13 cm long, blue, with a metallic sheen, ventral fins and tails behind gill covers orange-yellow or reddish. On the body there are 8-10 transverse dark stripes. The sides, and especially the back and head, are covered with blue dots. The dorsal and anal fins are blue with a white border, the caudal fin is reddish with blue veins. Females are brownish-bronze, transverse stripes are darker.
Adult fish occupy a permanent hiding place and a feeding area and do not allow anyone into their possessions. Bright coloring signals the strength and intentions of the owner. Malawian cichlids of rocky biotopes never move away from their place of birth, they form family groups. Constant crossing between individuals close in blood and sedentary behavior cause the appearance and consolidation of new signs. So, if on the island of Likoma the males of Melanochromis Johanna have two blue stripes on a black background, then in fish living on the Makanjili coast, these stripes have turned into rows of blue spots.
Many inhabitants of the rocky shores form interspecific flocks and settlement colonies. This is especially characteristic of pseudotrepheus and melanochromis similar in body shape, size and color. Interspecific flocks are another confirmation that these types of education appeared right here, in Nyasa, from some common ancestor and relatively recently, because the fish have not lost common features.
Therefore, in captivity, Malawians are best kept in a common aquarium. In order to reduce the number of fights between males within their territories, keeping fish with the same color should be avoided, especially if they differ in size. It is better to choose one male of each species for three or four females. Interestingly, the aggressive attitude of males towards females decreases in the general aquarium. During the persecution, the female escapes in a neighboring area, the owner of which does not pay attention to her, but the male will never be allowed into his territory.
The general aquarium should be spacious - no less than 80-100 liters. When kept in pairs, smaller aquariums can be used. The total number of fish for an aquarium is determined by the rule: 2-3 liters of water should fall on 1 cm of fish body length.
From limestones - sandstones, turtles, quartzites, multi-storey caves are made in an aquarium. The stones must be held tight so that the fish cannot throw them off. You can glue them with silicone.
Often, in order to lighten the load on the bottom, flower pots are placed, caves are made from pieces of opaque plastic or pieces of plastic pipes glued together. The aquarist himself must determine what is important to him - an attractive appearance or the practicality of an aquarium. When creating artificial shelters, it must be remembered that they must be without sharp edges and always with two exits. Plastic in the aquarium should not release any substances into the water. The best soil is coarse gravel. Rubble that has sharp edges can damage the lips and belly of the fish. It is better to take dark gravel: the fish look brighter against its background. Lighting, as in the lake, should be strong. Lamps are installed at the rate of 1 W per 1 liter of water. Place the lamps evenly, because the Malawians are afraid of their shadows at the bottom. From bright light, filamentous algae quickly appear on the surface of stones, fish willingly clean them off.
Malawian cichlids are very demanding on the purity of water and its saturation with oxygen. Water hardness is about 18 degrees; pH 7.5-8. To speed up the biological purification of water, plants are planted in the aquarium: wallisneria, magnolia vine, hygrophila, echinodorus. They are placed in pots, and the roots are covered with stones, protecting them from pulling out by fish. The bright green leaves of the Thai fern look very beautiful against the background of stones. Small-leaved soft plants are often eaten by cichlids, but it is these plants that quickly purify the water. Therefore, elodea, nyas, duckweed, etc. can be placed either in the part of a spacious external filter that is free from the filter element, or in a 5 cm wide chamber separated by glass from one of the walls of the aquarium. It will be a real biofilter. Every week, 1/4 of the volume of water in the aquarium must be replaced with fresh, settled tap water, the filters are washed regularly.
Malawian cichlid food should be varied and nutritious. From time to time give the fish a small amount of lean beef, heart or liver. Fish develop well if they are regularly fed sea fish fillet, shellfish meat, shrimp.
With proper feeding and clean water in the aquarium, the fish grow rapidly and become sexually mature at 9-12 months.
Before spawning, males come to life, start skirmishes in the upper layers of the water. Spawning is paired, takes place in a common aquarium. On a clean, stone-free area of the bottom, the female lays several large yellowish-orange eggs and immediately hides them in her mouth.
The eggs are fertilized by the milk of the male, on the anal fin of which orange releasers are visible. Females have no releasers or they are weakly expressed. Spawning lasts about an hour. During this time, the female lays 30-80, sometimes a little more or less eggs.
The development of caviar and larvae of Malawian cichlids takes place in the mouth of the female in about three weeks. In order for the female not to be disturbed by other residents, she must be placed in an aquarium with a capacity of 40-60 liters. with caves and the same water as in the general aquarium. Lighting should be calm, not very bright. The water temperature is 1...2 C higher than in the general aquarium. Too warm water (29 ... 30 C) is unsuitable, because it speeds up the metabolism in the body of the female and she becomes exhausted, becomes nervous, frightened by the slightest sounds and movements. There must be enough oxygen in the water. A decrease in the amount of oxygen in the water can cause the female to eat the eggs, weakening and mutilating the fry. It is better to carry the female in a plastic bag with water so that she does not get into the air. If the female remains in the community tank, she should not be affected by other fish. You need to feed other inhabitants in such a way that it does not bother her. Some fish, such as pseudotropheus, even with caviar in their mouths, eat a little every day. Since eggs develop in favorable conditions, larvae emerge from almost all of their eggs, which never happens in fish that do not care for offspring. But sometimes it happens that the fish eats its caviar. This happens when the female behaves very aggressively or when she is pursued by a pugnacious male in a common aquarium. A hungry female should not see food, take foreign objects into her mouth.
With the extinction of maternal instincts, it is necessary to incubate artificially on your own. Eggs are taken from the female only after the resting stage has passed, otherwise the development of the embryos will stop. At a temperature of 26 degrees C, this happens on the third day. For an incubator take a vessel with a capacity of 300-150 ml with a smooth inner surface, wash it with hot salt water and rinse. Half filled with water from the aquarium, the female is released. The body of the female, without taking it out of the water, is wrapped with a soft, clean cloth. Carefully opening the female's mouth with a spoon, she is turned upside down and immersed several times in the water of the incubator. Then the female is lowered into the net so that she calms down, and removed. Until the female calms down, you should not rush to transplant her into a common aquarium.
The fertilized caviar of Malawian cichlids is oblong, opaque, evenly colored light brown. At the sharp end of it there is a barely noticeable transparent drop of liquid. Add 3 drops of 1% methylene blue solution per liter of water to the incubator water to disinfect. In the incubator, the eggs should lie on a plastic or glass mesh, over which a sprayer is placed and a very weak flow is applied. Once a day, the water is completely replaced with water from the layering. Every 5-8 hours, the eggs are examined and the eggs affected by bacteria or fungi are removed with a pipette with a melted end. The dead caviar has spots, dents, unusual coloring. After catching the dead eggs, the water is replaced. Neglect of these rules can lead to the death of the entire caviar. The larvae are born large and pinkish. They are similar in color to the females. The first two - three weeks the fry eat cyclops, brine shrimp, small daphnia. If the female hatched the eggs, then she will look after the offspring for a few more weeks, but it is better to transplant her after the fry begin to feed on their own. For the correct development of artificially incubated fry, it is necessary to avoid a sharp pressure drop between the incubator (water level should be 5-8 cm) and the aquarium (water level 30-40 cm). The water level in the nursery tank should be low (10-20 cm) for two weeks. If this rule is violated, the swim bladder of the fry does not develop normally, the fry swim upside down, stagger. Under the influence of different composition of water and other unfavorable conditions, a violation of the proportion of 1: 1 in the number of males and females is often observed, uncharacteristic colors appear. With proper feeding, regular replacement of part of the water, a sufficient volume of the aquarium, the fry grow quickly and at four months they are 4-5 cm long. At this time, they must be fed with plant foods. Then the color of the fish changes. For example, the blue striped pseudotropheus Lombardo turns into an orange male. Most Malawians gradually degenerate through inbreeding. Therefore, it is often necessary to replace males. Quite often there are interspecific hybrids with an unusual color.
Landscapes of Tanganyika are similar to those of Malawi. The same rocks, sandy beaches, placers of stones. The water is a little softer - 11 degrees of hardness. The waters of Tanganyika are inhabited by two species of herring, five species of glass perch, 11 species of proboscis, catfish, barbs and characins. The rest of the inhabitants are cichlids. Similar conditions in two East African lakes have led to the formation of a group of fish with similar body structure, behavior and lifestyle. Many brightly colored fish species have been discovered recently in connection with the intensive study of the ichthyofauna of lakes and the export of fish. From 1963 to 1978 the number of known cichlid species increased from 126 to 160.
In aquariums, the most common fish are rocky and stony biotopes - Julidochromis and Lamprologus. In a medium-sized aquarium, it is better to keep Julidochromis, similar to auratus fry. Mascony, mother-of-pearl yulidochromisf and yulidochromis ornatus (golden parrot) live at a depth of 4-5 m, hiding among heaps of stones. Their color is similar: three black longitudinal stripes on a yellow body. In masked Julidochromis, the stripes are connected in some places. To correctly identify the species, you need to pay attention to the pattern on the caudal fin. In the golden parrot, the lower stripe forms a black spot on the tail. Egg-yellow fin bordered by a light and then a dark stripe. The masked Julidochromis also has black spots at the base of the fin, but there are two dark stripes along the perimeter. There is also a dark spot at the back of the anal fin. In the nacreous Julidochromis, the dark border of the caudal fin is very indistinct, but there are blue luminous dots on the caudal and dorsal fins. The anterior part of the pelvic fins, the upper edge of the dorsal fin, and the upper part of the eye are also blue. The length of the fish is 6-8 cm.
Numerous minks in the rocks at a depth of 20-25 m will be occupied by reticulated and ordinary yulidochromis. The usual yulidochromis (Yulidochromis Regen) has a body 12 cm long. Four black-brown stripes run along it. The caudal fin crosses four or five transverse sinuous black stripes.
The conditions for keeping Tangani fish are the same as for Malawian ones. Only water is replaced by small portions (1/20 part twice a week). Replacing a large volume of water with fresh water can cause an aggressive attitude of adult males even towards fry. Julidochromis fry live in flocks. They play with each other, eat together, swim. They treat fish of their own kind peacefully. The fight ends when one of the fish turns upside down near the surface, and they stop pestering her. By eight to ten months, the fish become sexually mature, one after another, pairs stand out from the flock. It is impossible to distinguish a female from a male by color, males are only slightly smaller and thinner. A pair must stand out from the pack itself. Forced pair formation in most cases ends with the death of the female. Pairs are formed constant. The opposite can be called the Malawian cichlids, the males of which form entire harems.
Fish are stimulated to spawn by adding fresh water. During the laying of eggs, the female swims in front of the male, turning sideways to him, and the male, by hitting his head into the back of the female, begins to beat the eggs out of her. Then the female quickly turns upside down and glues the eggs to the ceiling of the cave or a ceramic flower pot. There are few eggs, 50-60, in the usual yulidochromis sometimes 300. Spawning takes place at night or early in the morning. Parental care is shown by the male and female. The male, guarding the laid eggs, pounces on all living things, reacts nervously to loud sounds, movement near the aquarium. At a temperature of 25 ... 26 degrees, the larvae appear on the 11-12th day. After 5-7 days, their yolk sac dissolves, and they begin to eat cyclops, brine shrimp, rotifers, and then small daphnia, coretra, bloodworms. Adult fish are ready to spawn again in three to four weeks. Julidochromis live in an aquarium for 10 - 12 years, retain the ability to reproduce up to 4 - 5 years.
Genus lamprologus represented by forty species in Tanganyika and four in the Congo. Fish sizes are from 3.5 to 30 cm. Fish live from coastal shallows to a hundred meters
depths, some of them eat insect larvae and molluscs, others are vegetarians. Some feed on small fish.
In aquariums, orange lamprologus and a fragile fish - the princess of Burundi are most often found. Orange lamprologuses reach 12 cm in length, their body is elongated, slightly compressed from the sides, the fins are lemon or orange. Sometimes there are gray-brown specimens. The only spot of a different color on the body is a blackish eye. Males are larger than females, brighter colored. The behavior of the fish is the same as in Julidochromis. Orange lamprologus also form permanent pairs. It should be remembered that the extremely aggressive attitude of the male towards the female and other fish of his species occurs in fresh water. The orange lamprologus opens its mouth in such a way that it kills an opponent in a few attacks with its teeth. Fights can be prevented by keeping fish in old water and the presence of various types of fish in the general aquarium.
Spawning is paired, in caves. Females of orange lamprologus lay 150 eggs each, which develop in two days at a temperature of 26 degrees. After 7-8 days, the fry begin to feed on rotifers and cyclops larvae on their own.
Black Sea, rocky shore: right from the water's edge, dense thickets of brown algae cystoseira begin. The branches of its huge - up to one and a half meters in height - bushes - stretch to the surface with special bags filled with air. Cystoseira beardedCystoseira barbata- the main algae-macrophyte of the coast in the Black Sea, a landscape-forming species. Epiphytic algae grow on its branches, fouling animals settle - sponges, hydroids, bryozoans, mollusks, sedentary polychaete worms; small snails and crustaceans feed on the dying cells of its bark, fish hide and build nests among its branches, and marble crab and crab are disguised under its color. invisible Macropodia longirostris, and numerous coastal fish of the Black Sea, and the tricolium snail - all who live in this underwater jungle, stretching along the rocky bottom of the Black Sea from the surface of the water near the coast to a depth of 10-15 meters.
Greenfinches over the Cystoseira Forest
The male greenfinch, having fertilized the masonry, protects it - drives away other fish from the entrance, ventilates the nest with a wave of the pectoral fins. Such paternal care for offspring is a property of most local fish - so do dogfish and gobies, whose clutches can be found under stones and large empty shells.
Greenfinches feed by nibbling the crusts of fouling animals from the branches of algae and the surface of stones - mollusks, worms, sea acorns. To do this, their fangs move forward, and the mouth turns into hard tongs-tweezers for cleaning underwater rocks - with their help, they pull out crabs and shrimps hidden in the cracks, crumble shells of mollusks and tubes of worms. Zelenushki live up to the lowest boundary of the rocky soil - 25-40m.
Graceful palemon shrimp live in the crowns of Cystoseira Palaemon elegans, small snails crawl along the branches - tricolia, bittiums - and many other animal species that feed on dying bark cells and periphyton on the branches of the host algae. There are also small predators here - for example, the polychaete oil worm Nephthys hombergii. The crown of each large algae is a whole world, a community of animals adapted for living together, epiphytic macroalgae and masses of microscopic organisms: these are bacteria, unicellular periphyton algae (mainly diatoms), amoeba and ciliates; small crustaceans - sea goats and other amphipods; isopod crayfish - sea cockroaches idothea Idothea sp., harpacticides, balanus larvae and others.
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Sometimes on cystoseira bushes you can find amazing fish - seahorses. Their caudal fin is turned into a tenacious tail, with which they wrap around seagrass leaves or algae branches, and for movement they use a rapidly fluttering dorsal fin, so the skates swim very slowly and stand upright in the water. Black Sea seahorses they beautifully look after the females - this happens in the still cool spring water - two males, fluttering their dorsal fins, slowly swim around the female, weaving and unweaving their tails, pressing their cheeks, pushing off and scattering, again approaching and colliding ... The bewitching mating dance of seahorses can lasts a week. Males show the female overgrown brood bags, and she chooses who has the best. In the bag of one of the applicants, she, in the end, will lay her eggs - and the male, having fertilized, will carry her until tiny skates hatch. The same happens with relatives of seahorses - sea needles: both in those and in others - males become pregnant! |
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Tireless divers, who know how to watch attentively, can be rewarded with a meeting with an unusually beautiful fish - probably the brightest in the Black Sea - the red trope. The female troopers are algae-colored, but the males, guarding their territory on the sides of large underwater boulders, are red like arterial blood! These fish prefer to live on vertical rocky walls overgrown with algae, along which they run on "paws" (each with "three feathers" - separated rays of the pectoral fins). |
male guarding his territory |
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Here you can find large stone crabs Eriphia verrucosa- however, there are few of them near the shore - souvenir manufacturers and vacationers catch them. Each stone crab has a favorite hiding place and its own territory around which it protects from neighbors. Although, like other crabs, stone, by way of feeding, is also predominantly a scavenger, it is so strong and agile that from time to time it manages to grab a careless fish, or crush the shell of a living mollusk - even an almost invulnerable rapanaRapana venosa (up to 5 cm in size). His shell is strong, covered in spikes and sharp hairs. The eyes, like the entire body of the crab, are covered with cuticles - and even sharp hairs stick out of its eyes. At any depth here - lie, camouflaged among algae, variously colored scorpionfish; meandering, swim from stone to stone ubiquitous common blennies. |
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flocks of mullet swiftly sweeping at a shallow depth, above the very crowns of algae - these are large fish with silvery scales. During seasonal migrations along the coasts of the Caucasus and Crimea (in spring - for feeding in estuaries, Azov, river mouths, in autumn - for wintering near the Caucasian, Crimean, Anatolian shores) they move in huge masses - hundreds of fish in one flock. That is why in April-May and in October we most often see dolphins off the coast - they are chasing schools of mullet. Several species of mullet live in the Black Sea, but we most often meet near the coast mullet singil Lisa aurata- not the largest - up to 30 cm species of these fish, which is easy to identify by the orange spot on the "cheek" - the gill cover. The mullet is an excellent swimmer, but it finds food at the bottom - it simply eats silt and even sand, raking the soil with its lower jaw like a shovel. What is edible will be digested and assimilated, and everything else will pass through the fish and end up at the bottom again. Fish that eat this way are called soil beetles, or detritivores. Since an unlimited amount of detritus is formed in the Black Sea, the food base of the mullet is inexhaustible. All species of mullet are able to live in both sea and fresh water (euryhaline fish), which gives them a huge advantage - mullet fry keeps in the mouths of rivers and in shallow water near the coast, where they are not threatened by marine predatory fish - bluefish, horse mackerel, garfish; they feed in limans and estuaries rich in nutrient silt, where salinity fluctuations are very large; and the mullet winters at a depth of more than 50 m under the steep shores of the Black Sea - in the most stable conditions. |
 Gray mullet Lisa aurata Other species of mullet in the Black Sea: becoming rare sharp-nosed Mugil saliens; larger mullet loban Mugil cephalus, widely distributed in coastal regions around the world. The large Far Eastern mullet brought by Soviet ichthyologists to the Black Sea in the 1980s breeds very successfully in the Black Sea estuaries and Azov. pilengas Mugil sojui. In recent years, the pilengas in the Black Sea is the main object of fishing from the shore - especially during its spring migration.
Pilengas spring course near the beach VDC Orlyonok, depth 1-2m. A dark mass of hundreds of 30-50 cm fish can be seen from the shore. |
flora and fauna of underwater rocks of the Black Sea - 40 meters down
As a child, I often went to visit my grandparents in the Krasnodar Territory, and I myself lived with my parents in one of the cities not far from the northern capital. For me, these “business trips” were a joy, three whole months on the street with friends, sun, heat, watermelons at 10 kopecks per kilogram. And after the vile climate of the north-west of our Motherland, this can generally be called a paradise. Many years have passed since then, and now I live with my girlfriend all in the same city. In the summer of 2010, the girl told me that our climate is bad, we should have a rest somewhere in the south - come on, she says, we’ll go to Egypt or Turkey. And then it dawned on me - why go to Turkey, when my relatives live in our south? That's what they decided on. And after a couple of weeks, we were already drinking tea with her in a carriage tapping on the rails. Next, a village with a population of 70 thousand inhabitants was waiting for us, 500 kilometers from the Black Sea. After staying with my grandmother for two days, we were sent to the sea by bus. To be honest, this part of the journey was much less pleasant: almost a ten-hour bus ride, in hot weather, without air conditioning - just a mockery.
We arrived at a Soviet-style pioneer camp located to the east of the village of Novomikhailovsky. It was built, apparently, a long time ago, but the management carefully followed it. The old houses, although they were built from crooked, dried boards, were completely painted recently. In general, the camp was quite tidy, well-groomed and did not at all create a feeling of abandonment and decay. A few words about how we got here: in the village where my grandparents lived, there was a single machine-building plant, and my grandfather had a friend who was one of its leaders. Through him, my girlfriend and I made a weekly trip to this camp almost free of charge. In fact, we were sent on vacation as factory workers.
The camp itself was located at a fairly high altitude relative to the sea, a beautiful view of the sea opened from the edge of the cliff, and at night you simply cannot imagine a more romantic place: a perfectly flat moon path appeared on the surface of the water, and it seemed as if you could walk along it. But the descent to the shore was a real hell for the well-fed (which, thank God, neither I nor my girlfriend are): a huge, long staircase passing through thickets of trees growing on the mountainside. Just before the beach (about ten meters to the end) the stairs appeared from the thickets of trees and from the beach one could see who was walking along it. Sometimes parents stood in this place and made sure that their children did not swim far. It took 15 minutes to fully climb the stairs. However, with all this, literally every five meters a lantern hung above the stairs, which made night walks along it very romantic. In general, for a young couple there was everything to have a great rest. The beach itself was located a couple of kilometers from the resort village - if my memory serves me, then it is called Novomikhailovsky - but at the same time this very beach is located between two ledges, and as a result it seems that there is no civilization around for many kilometers. This solitude was very pleasant to me and my girlfriend.
In this camp, I met my old friend - Zhenya. He himself seemed to be from Krasnoyarsk and also came for the summer to his grandmother in that very village in the Krasnodar Territory. In general, in childhood, we spent every summer with him together. I stayed in his house, and my girlfriend went to our house. When I was chatting with Zhenya, a most amusing idea suddenly came into my head, as it seemed to me then: to scare my girlfriend. Having laughed, Zhenya and I developed a plan: on the last night before leaving, the girl and I were going to take a walk along the beach at night, at that very moment Zhenek in a black mask from the Scream was supposed to crawl out of the thickets and start chasing us. We also agreed that when I run away, I will lead the girl to a dead end in the rocks, and at that moment Zhenek will take off his mask, and we will all laugh together.
The next night, as planned, my girlfriend and I went for a walk on the beach. The weather was simply amazing: calm, smooth water, like glass with a moonlit path, the silence is broken only by a slight swaying of the water. We walk along the shore, pebbles rattle under our feet. Slowly, we began to approach the thickets, and I already began to chuckle to myself. Suddenly, Zhenek comes out of the thickets - it must be admitted that he managed to get out spectacularly; I was afraid that when he got out of the bushes, he would make a noise and turn around, spoiling the rally from the very beginning. But he did not disappoint: he stepped out of the thicket with even, straight steps, pebbles crunched under his feet. I felt my girlfriend's nails dig into my hand, so hard that I almost screamed. For a second we froze, and then Zhenek suddenly walked sharply in our direction (at that moment there were fifteen meters between us). At the same second, the girl screamed and ran in the opposite direction (we walked towards the stairs), dragging me along with her. We ran very fast, my slates even flew off my feet, and the girl kept dragging me along with her. I turned back and saw Zhenya following us - he was walking with a quick, confident step, and in the moonlight he looked very scary: somewhere he found something like a black hoodie, long, to the very ground, and there was a hood on his head. I chuckled to myself and abruptly dragged my girlfriend towards the very dead end we agreed on. In fact, we ran away not far - the stairs with flashlights were perfectly visible from here. Having run into a dead end, I dragged the girl with me into a corner that was hidden from the moonlight, we pressed our foam against the cold stone and froze. I covered the girl's mouth with my hand and gestured: "Shh!". I myself was already bursting with laughter, I was ready to neigh like a horse at any moment. But the girl was trembling so much that I thought the stone behind us was about to shake. Suddenly, very close by, we heard the crunch of pebbles under our feet. The footsteps came closer, all at the same steady pace. Zhenek appeared in front of the stones, he stopped abruptly and seemed to peer into the darkness. The girl grabbed me with her nails again. Zhenek began to move in our direction, but with slower steps. After taking a few steps, he stopped again and began to turn his head.
And then for some reason I stopped bursting with laughter, the fun inside was replaced by confusion, and a slight chill ran down my back: I heard Zhenek, turning his head from side to side, sniffing. Yes, he sniffed like a dog looking for a trail. A variety of thoughts flashed through my head, and a shiver went through my body. Still not believing in the reality of what was happening, I was numb and could not move. And then my brain gave me a chilling thought: Zhenya’s “Scream” mask, although it was black, was made of glossy plastic, which in the moonlight, even under the hood at least once, would reflect the moonlight. And the one in front of us had solid black under the hood. Now, realizing that it was not Zhenya standing seven meters in front of me, I realized that I needed to act. I turned and looked at the girl, she closed her eyes, trembled, but did not make a sound. With my bare feet, I carefully groped for the pebbles, afraid to make any sound. I managed to put one of the stones on my foot. What stood in front of us continued to turn its head and sniff, but did not move from its place. Horror fettered my whole body, but I understood that we could not stand here like this all night and not make a sound. And suddenly one of the lanterns on the stairs blinked. I began to peer and realized that the lantern did not blink at all, just someone passing by blocked its light. And then I broke out in a cold sweat. In the distance I saw Zhenya, who was carrying a mask in his hand. I was ready to scream in fear, but, thank God, I restrained myself and in the next second I swung my leg and launched the stone forward. The stone rang loudly, and at the same moment what was standing in front of us soared (I can’t call it a jump) a couple of meters into the air and collapsed where the stone hit. The girl screamed, I, without wasting a second, grabbed her with all my might and rushed towards the stairs. The girl kept screaming, the echo rolled along the beach, and in my ears I heard only the wild beating of the heart and the roar of the pebbles behind us. This creature realized that it had been deceived, and now it was rushing after us in a completely different way than before: it ran, covering two or three meters with one step. I squeezed everything I could out of myself, and now we were already running along the iron stairs ...
When we got to our house, the girl was already just sobbing and writhing in hysterics. I rushed to calm her down and said that it was a hoax, that our pursuer was my friend Zhenya, with whom I agreed to scare her. I must admit that I did not think that she could hit me like that, but in a second I was already sitting on the floor, and my eyes were swimming from a sickly blow to the jaw. The girl collapsed into bed, still sobbing, but after a while the sobs stopped and she fell asleep. I lay and looked at the ceiling. I still couldn't believe it all. And why Zhenya and I ...
Zhenya! I completely forgot about him, but he stayed somewhere with this creature. I wanted to run back, but I couldn't. Fear kept me from getting out of bed. I stayed in bed and stared up at the ceiling. After a while, fatigue took its toll and I fell asleep.
The next day we packed our things and prepared to leave. The girl did not talk to me, and the training camp was dull. And I still had a feeling of fear. When we were stuffing things into the luggage departments, I ran into Zhenya, who also did not want to talk to me at first, and then said that, as promised, he went downstairs, climbed into the bushes, but then he wanted to relieve himself, and he went in deeper into the bushes. Then a wild cry of a girl rolled along the beach, and then he heard a clatter on the stairs. When he got out of the bushes, there was no one on the beach. He thought that we scared him on purpose. As a result, Zhenek was offended, the girl did not talk to me for another two days, and for some time I could not sleep at night and was shaking with horror.