Where did the ratan fish come from? What kind of rotan fish is this and how to catch it? It's been a while since you had a really big catch

Rotan is a fish of the order Perciformes. Its body does not exceed 25 cm in length. Amur sleeper is found in the rivers of Primorye and in the Amur basin, but several decades ago it was introduced into many reservoirs, where short term became the main occupant.

Rotan is a small fish, often called firebrand. Its color is dark, from brown to almost black. Brown spots are clearly visible on the belly and sides. The rotan is also distinguished by two separate dorsal fins. The closest relative of this species is the southern goby. The rotan's mouth is large, it is directed upward, protruding forward barely noticeably. Pelvic fins are separate. During spawning, males become almost black. Probably, it is for this reason and, perhaps, for its low mobility that rotan is called a firebrand.

This fish prefers to stay near flooded bushes, in small snags, and in shallows. It feeds mainly on animal food. Rotan is a fish that most prefers the eggs of fry, so it very quickly minimizes the number of other species in the reservoir. Very often, where this species settles, after a year or two there are no other fish left. Amur sleeper reproduces only in summer; females lay their eggs on the lower part of the leaves. aquatic plants. Most often, spawning occurs in thickets of pondweeds, egg capsules and water lilies. The number of eggs in one such clutch is about 10 thousand. Rotan is a very tenacious fish. It can survive even where other species, including crucian carp and tench, die.

Today, rotan is an inhabitant of almost all reservoirs in Russia with the exception of Crimean peninsula. But it is possible that it will soon appear in these places. It has been noticed that in those reservoirs where perch and pike are active, rotan fails to take a leading position. These species do not allow it to reproduce heavily and eat eggs peaceful fish. But in ponds and lakes where only crucian carp lives, rotan very quickly masters and becomes the master of the situation. Most often, this voracious fish turns out to be the only inhabitant of small reservoirs with very harsh conditions life. These are stagnant quarries, overgrown with mud, overgrown ponds. Rotan is able, no worse than crucian carp, to withstand a critical lack of oxygen and complete freezing of a reservoir in winter.

Rotan is a fish that can be a lot of fun to catch. The largest individuals stay under the cover of duckweed or under the wide leaves of water lilies. This behavior is completely unusual for bulls. When the reservoir is heavily overgrown, they look for clearings or windows among aquatic vegetation. Such places can be created artificially, even with the help of an ordinary shelf. Rotans are not at all shy. They float to a place free of vegetation very quickly, and are not bothered by the presence of humans. Another one spotted interesting feature. Rotan loves the red and white float very much. The reasons for this are not clear. But the fishermen noticed that it was he who attracted the attention of the nimble fish.

This is such an interesting rotan fish. A photo of her can be seen in this article. This fish has individuality and is undeservedly not popular among professional fishermen.

The rotan fish, a photo and description of which can be found below, is a predator, since its diet mainly includes fry and caviar of other inhabitants of the reservoir. There are two versions of how rotan, an indigenous inhabitant of the Far East, ended up in the rivers and lakes of other regions. The first claims that he was released into the pond from the royal aquarium, and the second claims that he was brought in already under Soviet rule.

Thanks to its huge head, rotan received the nickname “little firebrand”. Gradually, towards the tail, its body begins to narrow. The rotan's mouth is full of small sharp teeth, capable of tenaciously grasping the most slippery prey. It has dense, medium-sized scales.

What is the difference between rotan and goby

Anglers unfamiliar with the firebrand may mistake it for a goby. This is probably why another name stuck to it - Amur goby. But it is easy to distinguish a sleeper from a goby if you carefully examine its pelvic fins.

In the firebrand they are paired and located closer to the head, but in the goby they grow together and turn into something like a sucker. The color and color of rotan directly depend on the bottom of the reservoir where it lives. The darkest part of its body is the back, abdomen and sides are usually yellowish, dark gray or brown-green. During the spawning period, rotan becomes almost black.

The habitat of rotan and its origin

At first, the habitat of rotan was the Far Eastern rivers, reservoirs of China and North Korea. However, at the beginning of the twentieth century, it began to be hooked by fishermen in St. Petersburg and the Moscow region. Now it can be found in rivers such as the Don, Dnieper, Volga, Danube and others.

There is an opinion that birds that carry its eggs on their paws help the rotan migrate from one body of water to another. In addition, people themselves deliberately move it from one place to another.

Rotan is a species of ray-finned fish, belongs to the order Perciformes and is part of the firebrand family. Typically, its size rarely exceeds the palm of an adult, however, under favorable living conditions, a trophy specimen weighing a kilogram and up to fifty centimeters long can be hooked.

The maximum lifespan of a firebrand is about fifteen years, but most often it is rarely more than seven to ten. Puberty in rotan occurs when it turns two years old.

Rotan begins to spawn in May-July, laying about a thousand eggs at a time. After the female lays eggs, the male begins to protect her, actively driving other fish away from the spawning area.

Rotan lives best in lakes and ponds with stagnant water, the bottom of which is densely covered with vegetation. Like an unpretentious fish, it easily survives the partial drying out of a reservoir and is not afraid dirty water, not afraid severe frosts, capable of freezing the pond to the very bottom, and does not require large quantity oxygen in the water, without which most other fish experience so-called death.

Like other predatory fish, rotan happily eats juveniles of other species. Moreover, he does not hesitate to snack on his smaller relatives. In addition, he eats everything that floats in a pond and is capable of crawling into his mouth.

It does not even disdain tadpoles, leeches, beetles, frogs, insect larvae, and so on. Rotan fry feed on plankton and zoobenthos living at the bottom of the reservoir.

Having eaten, the firebrand lies on the bottom and digests what it has eaten. The main type of hunting of a rotan is an attack on an unsuspecting victim from a hiding place. Often he himself becomes the object of hunting for large predators- pike, perch, pike perch and others.

There is an opinion that where rotan grows, other fish species are threatened with complete extinction. It is supposedly capable of devouring all living things in a reservoir, but this is far from the case. Despite the fact that firebrand is considered a trash fish, it still brings some benefits.

For example, it controls the number of fish. If there are too many crucian carp in the lake, then they are simply not able to grow to large sizes, since there is not enough food for everyone. Rotan, by eating extra fry, allows the crucian carp to gain weight, which clearly pleases the fishermen who come to the pond.

You can eat rotan fish

In addition, the firebrand, like most predatory fish, has tasty dietary meat. It can be eaten in all forms - boiled, fried, dried, in the form of cutlets, and so on. It, like the goby, has few large bones, which makes it especially attractive to those who do not like to pick at prickly fish skeletons.

Video about rotan fish

Catching large rotan in Blizzard. An unknown body of water in the northeast of the Chelyabinsk region.

Canned rotan in tomato

Speed ​​fishing for rotan

Just a few decades ago it was possible to meet ratan fish in Russia only on Far East. Today, fishermen from all over Russia are sounding the alarm, because ratan has appeared in their native waters - a fish that devours everything around. These unpretentious inhabitants of the standing ones are unusually prolific, tolerate all the hardships of the Russian climate well and feed on the eggs of other inhabitants of ponds and lakes.

Ratan fish: description

The most major representatives have a length of 30 cm, minimum size adult - 14 cm. Externally, the ratan is an unremarkable fish. It has an elongated shape, reminiscent of a firebrand. The color is often changeable, the color of the scales becomes bright black, the rest of the time gray, brown and green tones predominate.

The body is dense, with subtle spots and stripes visible on the back irregular shape. The photo of which is presented below is distinguished by its huge mouth. It is for this disproportionately large mouth that representatives of Perccottus glenii were given the name ratan. Many small but sharp teeth help deal with prey.

Living conditions

The waters of the Amur were originally the homeland of these predators. In the 19th century, seemingly harmless fish began to be imported into central Russia, released into the rivers of St. Petersburg and other cities. And thanks to its incredible vitality, the ratan multiplied so much that it began to displace other fish from reservoirs. This is due to the fact that eggs became the basis of the diet valuable species tadpoles, larvae, insects, mollusks. The very presence of this trash fish in a reservoir suggests that other species are doomed to extinction. Damage is caused to the entire ichthyofauna.

It is very difficult to get rid of ratan, since this rat is very unpretentious to its living conditions. In order to survive the drought, the ratan is buried in muddy sediments, and with the onset of rains it continues its life activity as if nothing had happened. In frozen bodies of water, the predator overwinters well in the ice. In waters with poor food content, these fish practice cannibalism, eating their smaller relatives.

Scientists' opinions and economists' forecasts

For the reason that ratan is a fish that destroys ichthyofauna, its entry into large rivers and lakes are considered by scientists as pollution. It's not always people's fault. The eggs are often carried by migrating birds. A few eggs are enough for all living creatures in the pond to disappear within 4-5 years. Pike, perch and catfish can compete with firebrand fish. The annual damage from the decline in the number of valuable fish species is growing. Experts do not recommend placing a predator in a ratan fish tank; the fish will quickly get rid of competitors.

But for decorative mini ponds there is no best view. Many anglers note that ratan bites well, especially in winter. For bait, you can use any bait: worms, grasshoppers, meat. The taste of the fish is not bad, but it occupies your head most body, and the belly is often filled with shellfish and snail shells. For this reason, there is little interest in the fish, and most anglers note that the harm from ratan is much greater than the benefits.

Rotan– predatory freshwater fish with a memorable appearance. It has a short, oblong body covered with medium-sized scales. The head is large with a large mouth filled with several rows of sharp, small teeth. Depending on the habitat, the color of the fish can vary from grayish-greenish to brown, and during spawning it becomes completely black.

Lifestyle

Rotan adapts perfectly to any living conditions, even the most difficult ones. He feels quite normal in winter during periods of severe frost. When reservoirs freeze completely, fish burrow into the mud. It also survives the partial drying up of reservoirs in summer time. Other predators are not able to survive in such conditions. In large reservoirs, the main competitors of rotan are perch, pike perch and pike.

Rotan habitats

This fish prefers reservoirs with stagnant water, while it does not favor rivers with fast and medium currents. Rotana can mainly be found in ponds, overgrown lakes, swampy reservoirs and oxbow lakes.

Most promising places fishing - coastal zone, especially where bushes grow, there is underwater vegetation, thickets of water lilies. This fish can also be found near trees that have fallen into the pond. Rotan hunts, as befits a real predator - hiding in ambush, it waits for prey.

Nutrition

Despite the fact that rotan is a relatively small fish, it is quite voracious and almost omnivorous. The fry feed on zooplankton, and as they grow older, the diet becomes more varied. Leeches, fish eggs, tadpoles, and fry can serve as food. In reservoirs with a shortage of food, rotan can eat fry of its own species.

Development and spawning

Rotan grows up to 25 cm in length. In favorable environmental conditions it can gain weight up to 800 g, but such specimens are very rare. Basically, this fish weighs between 250-300 g. And it lives on average about 4-5 years, although some individuals live up to 7-8 years of age.

Rotan is ready for reproductive activity at two years old. Spawning begins in May-June, when the water warms up to 15-20 o C. One female is capable of sweeping up to 1000 eggs, which she deposits on underwater vegetation, plant roots, driftwood, etc. And the male’s task, in addition to fertilization, includes protecting the clutch.

Photo of rotan fish

Fishing for rotan

Various gear is suitable for fishing for rotan: a spinning rod, a nod for summer fishing, a float rod, you can even just tie a hook with an attachment to the line. The fish actively bite from spring until the first ice, then the bite becomes weaker, but does not stop at all.

Rotan very actively attacks the bait and almost immediately swallows it along with the hook. Thanks to this activity, the fish almost never leaves, but the angler must have with him a device with which he can get the hook.

Regardless of the time of day, rotan tries to find any shelter (grass, mound, snag, etc.) and hide there. Because this predatory fish, then it is preferable to use moving baits to catch it.

Catching rotan with a jig

In summer good results can be achieved by using jig tackle. In this case, it is advisable to choose a heavier jig, and a line with a diameter of 0.14-0.16 mm. For fishing with such bait, a rod 3-4 m long is best suited. And at the end there should be a guard at a right angle.

The technique of fishing with a jig is not complicated. You need to lower the bait to the bottom, and then begin to smoothly lift the tip of the rod up and at the same time shake it slightly. If the rotan bites, the guard will react, although the bite will be transmitted even along the rod. It is at this moment that you need to hook.

Catching rotan with a float rod

You can use any flywheel model, fishing line with a diameter of 0.1-0.15 and a float with any weight. Since rotan is not shy in terms of thick line, you can do without a leash. Bait can be a dung or earthworm, maggot, any meat, or chicken skin.

Fishing for rotan using a spinning rod

Any spinning rod is suitable for fishing for rotan. The optimal length is 3 m. Of course, you can choose longer or longer short models. But with a shorter rod, it will be more difficult to fish coastal windows. And if you use a spinning rod that is too long, it will be much more difficult to get into small clearings. When choosing a reel, you can give preference to any ultralight model, and instead of fishing line, it is advisable to use braided line.

The range of spinning baits is quite diverse, but for rotan fishing best choice rubber baits in the form of twisters, silicone worms, etc. will become available. Their use will make spinning fishing for rotan much more effective and efficient.

Fishing for rotan in winter

It is best to catch winter rotan by first and the last ice. The fishing rod can be of any design, the main thing is that the rod on which the winter reel is mounted is sufficiently elastic. The diameter of the scaffold can vary between 0.15-0.2 mm. When using large jigs and winter spinners, you need to choose a harder nod.

The fishing technique is as follows: you need to lower the spoon into the hole, wait until it reaches the bottom, and then lift it a little. Then perform several oscillatory movements and make a sharp swing of 30-40 cm. Then a pause of up to 5 seconds, after which minor vibrations follow and everything starts from the very beginning, that is, the spoon must be lowered to the bottom, etc.

As additional bait, you can use pieces of meat or chicken skin.

Video of catching rotan

Rotan in cooking

From this fish, like any other, you can cook a lot delicious dishes. In addition, rotan meat contains vitamin PP and minerals useful for the human body: zinc, fluorine and others.

Rotan cutlets

To prepare this dish you will need the following ingredients:

• Rotan carcasses (without entrails, fins and head) – 1 kg;
• Onion – 2 pcs.;
• Boiled egg – 2 pcs.;
• Raw egg – 1 pc.;
• Semolina – 2 tbsp.

Fish, onions and boiled eggs grind in a meat grinder, add a raw egg, semolina, salt and pepper. Mix everything well, form cutlets from the resulting minced meat and roll them in flour. Pour vegetable oil into a frying pan and after it is well heated, put the cutlets in the frying pan and fry them on both sides until cooked.

If desired, the cutlets can be stewed in sauce, for the preparation of which you will need:

• Onions sautéed in vegetable oil – 2 pcs.;
• Tomato paste– 6 tbsp;
• Water – 1 tbsp.;
• Sugar – 1 tsp;
• Spices.

Place the cutlets in a saucepan, add sauce and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.

Stewed rotan

Wash the fish, clean it, remove the entrails and heads. Place the carcasses in a deep frying pan, alternating layers of fish with vegetables (carrots, onions and tomatoes). Add some water sunflower oil, bay leaf, salt, pepper and simmer until tender. The dish is considered ready when the bones become soft.

Bazhe

To prepare this dish, you will need large rotans. Initially, you need to clean, gut, wash the fish and separate the fillet, which should amount to 600 g. Cut it into pieces, roll them in breadcrumbs and fry in vegetable oil. Place the finished fish on a plate and pour over the sauce. It turns out to be a very tasty and original dish.

To prepare the sauce you need:

• Garlic – a few cloves;
• Walnuts– 150 g;
• Wine vinegar – 2 tbsp;
• Dill/parsley;
• Salt pepper.

Grind the garlic and nuts in a meat grinder, add when cooled boiled water, finely chopped herbs, vinegar, salt, pepper and mix well.

Rotan – fish, brought from the East. In Russian reservoirs, the voracious predator, indiscriminate in food and not picky about living conditions, has found only a few competitors. Therefore, the dominance of local water bodies by rotans began.

Such expansion is not only bad for the ecosystem, but also does not suit the fishermen. In respect of taste qualities rotan trash, has no value. You want to tinker with your catch even less when you feel thick and foul-smelling mucus on your hands. It generously covers the entire body of the fish.

Description and features of rotan

The hero of the article belongs to the perciformes. Among them there is a suborder of gobiformes, separated into a separate family of firebrands. Externally, rotan really looks more like a sea goby than. The large head with a large mouth occupies about a third of the body length.

If you look in the photo, rotan appears with barely noticeable dorsal and pectoral fins, scanty tail. This further shifts the focus to the animal's head. The body of the fish gradually tapers towards the tail, looking like some kind of appendage.

Rows of sharp teeth are visible in the rotan's mouth. With them the fish digs into worse prey. Teeth are periodically renewed. The grip of a formidable predator does not quite correlate with its size.

Most rotans rarely outgrow the 24 centimeter mark. Typically the length of the fish is 14-18 centimeters.

The dominance of rotans in water bodies of the European part of Russia began in 1912. Then the voracious fish was released into St. Petersburg. Aquarists did this. By the revolution of 1917, rotan had inhabited all the reservoirs near the Gulf of Finland.

In what bodies of water is it found?

River fish rotan It can live in a swamp, in a roadside ditch, or even in a puddle on the road itself. There, the big-headed creature feels even better than in running water.

Firstly, near stagnant bodies of water higher temperature, and rotans love warmth. Secondly, in the swamps and puddles the hero of the article has no competitors. In the rivers there are larger predators, ready to profit from rotan. Therefore, flowing reservoirs are preferred large species big-headed creatures that can withstand the onslaught of other predators.

Initially, rotan lived in the Amur basin in China. Since the river flows through Russian lands, the fish came to them. Then the rotan fell into the lake. From there the hero of the article was brought to St. Petersburg.

The unpretentiousness of the animal also played a role here. Not every fish will survive such a long journey; at the beginning of the 20th century, the speed of movement across the country and vehicles there were others.

Rotan is considered a trash fish

Rotan loves dark, muddy ponds. Fish survive where even crucian carp die. People say that rotan lives where it is released. After the reservoirs of St. Petersburg, by the way, the hero of the article was released to Moscow. This is again the work of aquarists.

They brought small and unpretentious fish to sell at the capital's poultry market. Making impulse purchases, Muscovites often released their pets into the wild. Rotans cost pennies. Therefore, having grabbed the fish from the hands of the sellers, many only later realized that they did not want to care for the animal.

The situation is especially typical for children who beg for a pet, but are not ready to bear responsibility for it.

If there is silt in the reservoir, the rotan released into the wild will survive. Burrowing into the viscous bottom, the fish successfully exists in almost completely frozen rivers and ponds. The hero of the article also survives in reservoirs that dry up during periods of summer heat. The same silt saves. Burrowing into it, the fish finds the necessary amount of moisture and oxygen.

Types of rotan

The type of rotan brought to Russia is called firebrand. However, there are a lot of alternative names: sandpiper, rooster, greenback, goby, grasshopper, farrier. Blacksmith, throat and wrasse are also on the list. The wide list of names is associated with the rapid spread of hitherto unknown fish.

They caught it in different places and called it differently. In fact, behind all the names there is one type of rotan.

The head is colored brown. The color varies depending on the body of water. IN clean waters rotans are lighter, but in dirty and muddy ones they are darker. Staying near the bottom, the fish camouflages itself by choosing the one closest to environment color.

In the photo there is black rotan

There are, for example, gray-green firebrands. These are invisible against the background of swampy silt. There are dirty brown and even almost black rotans.

Firebrands begin to prey when their body is only a centimeter long. What does rotan fish eat? The hero of the article inflicts damage on the numbers of other species not so much by eating them themselves as by destroying the eggs of others. This is an easy, tasty and small prey for miniature rotan.

Rotan is a predator that destroys the eggs of commercial fish

The expansion of rotan into water bodies of the European part has back side. Fish can be beneficial in cases where waters are overpopulated with other species. For example, there are too many crucian carp in the pond. There is not enough food for everyone. As a result, the crucian carp becomes smaller, unable to gain maximum weight.

By eating the fry of brooding fish, the firebrand controls their numbers. There is plenty of food for the dwindling population, and the crucian carp in the reservoir is gaining weight.

Outside Russia, two more species of rotans live. They inhabit the rivers and lakes of Asia, larger than firebrands. Otherwise, the differences between the species are insignificant, expressed in the color and size of the fins.

Fishing for rotan

There is no commercial fishing for firebrands. The fish meat is not up to the level of store-bought. But, in private, the hero of the article is caught. Rotan bites exclusively on meat. Lard, fry, and bloodworms are used as bait.

You can fish in the Volga, Dnieper, Irtysh, Ob, Ural, Danube, Dniester and Dnieper. In the eastern part of the country, firebrand inhabits almost all rivers and adjacent lakes and swamps. Amur sleeper gets from a reservoir to a reservoir not only due to human fault, but also when rivers flood.

In small and warm ponds, which the firebrand especially loves, fishing is complicated by vegetation. There is usually a lot of flora in and above such bodies of water. Gear gets tangled in algae, snags, branches and tree roots.

When catching a firebrand for the first time, many people wonder edible fish rotan or not. Those who have already tried it claim that it is possible to eat it. The white meat of the firebrand is tender and soft, but it just smells like mud and is bony.

Basically, rotan is fried in a flour coating, like crucian carp. Having simmered in the frying pan and absorbed the spices, the hero of the article eats with pleasure. Sometimes, rotan meat is added to the combined fish soup. different types fish

When introducing firebrands into the menu, many are interested in benefits and harms of rotan fish. Its meat contains vitamin PP. This is niacin, which is involved in enzyme synthesis, lipid metabolism and recovery reactions in the body. Rotan is rich in microelements such as zinc, sulfur, fluorine, molybdenum, chromium.

Like other fish, the hero of the article accumulates the elements that predominate in the reservoir. Therefore, the benefits of fish are conditional. Individuals caught from polluted water bodies are unlikely to be suitable for healthy eating.

Reproduction and lifespan

Russian rotans are called heads not only because of the size of the head. The association with coals in the stove also plays a role. During the breeding season, the inconspicuous and brown males of the species are covered with orange-red spots. With them, the dense body of the fish becomes like a burning firebrand.

Rotans reproduce in late spring - early summer. The water should warm up to 17-20 degrees. Mating games the firebrand lasts for several days. Fish spawn by attaching sticky mucus to floating objects or bottom stones and driftwood. Females try to find a secluded corner. This way the eggs have a better chance of turning into fry.

Rotan embryos need more oxygen than adult fish. Parents have to continuously fan the eggs with their fins. By creating a current, fish organize an “approach” of water with fresh oxygen.

The responsibility of caring for the eggs is assigned to the males of the firebrands. They not only fan the embryos, but also zealously protect them from predators, rushing to hit them with their massive foreheads.

Rotans live from 4 to 7 years. In aquariums, with proper care, firebrands reach 9 years of age. However, modern aquarists, spoiled by brightly colored fish from overseas, rarely purchase firebrands for visual pleasure.