Breeding crucian carp in aquaculture

Breeding crucian fish. Crucian carp, golden crucian carp and silver crucian carp are common inhabitants of water bodies in the European part of Russia and Siberia and are frequent objects of aquaculture.

Content

• Why do they breed crucian carp in a pond?
• Golden carp in pond fish farming
• Spawning of golden crucian carp
• Growth of golden crucian carp
• Silver crucian carp in pond fish farming
• Growth of silver crucian carp
• Spawning of goldfish
• Breeding crucian carp at home
• How to organize wintering for crucian carp
• How much crucian carp can you grow in 1 square meter?
• Feeding crucian carp in a pond
• Crucian carp as an invasive species

 

 

Crucian carp as an object of aquaculture

Silver crucian carp - Carassius auratus gibelio - lives in the river basins of the Pacific Ocean and Central Asia. Among crucian carp there are hybrids that are especially promising for breeding and growing in ponds, where the oxygen content in water can decrease to 2-3 mg/l.

Golden crucian carp (also known as round and common) - C.carassius - with a short, high body, laterally compressed; the back and abdomen are rounded. The back is dark brown with a greenish tint, and the body is from yellow to golden depending on the habitat: in peat quarries the color of crucian carp is very dark with a greenish tint, and in reservoirs with a sandy bottom the color of crucian carp changes to light golden. In some reservoirs, golden crucian carp may be similar in appearance to silver crucian carp.

How to distinguish golden crucian carp from silver crucian carp:
1) lifting the operculum, count the gill rakers. If there are 33-35 or less, then it is a golden crucian; silver has more of them - 39-50;
2) according to the structure of the swim bladder: in gold crucian carp it is oval, and in silver crucian carp it is cone-shaped.

 

Why do they breed crucian carp in a pond?

Why are crucian carp bred in a pond - there can be many reasons why crucian carp are bred in a pond, but the main ones are

• The crucian carp is an omnivore, eats everything, there is no big problem in feeding the crucian carp in the pond.
• Crucian carp is unpretentious and you can breed crucian carp in a pond or in peat quarries, dead, overgrown lakes, swampy ponds and other bodies of water where other fish cannot survive.
• You can breed crucian carp at home - crucian carp can live in very small ponds; such ponds can often be dug even in a summer cottage and breeding crucian carp in the country.
• Breeding crucian carp in a pond at the dacha is possible because crucian carp can live in water with a small amount of oxygen dissolved in the water.
• Some argue that it is possible to breed crucian carp in a barrel, although this is not a clarium catfish.
• Crucian carp meat is not inferior in quality to carp meat, and at the same time it is much easier to grow.
• When rearing crucian carp and crucian carp together, crucian carp adapt very flexibly to unfavorable factors and often crucian carp are the only fish that are immune to carp rubella.
• In the south of Russia, the productivity of ponds stocked with crucian carp is in no way inferior in productivity to carp ponds; the growth rate of silver crucian carp is high; fingerlings could reach 200 - 300 g by the end of summer.
• Breeding crucian carp at home for beginners is good because the broodstock can be safely caught in any river and then bred in the country.
• Breeding crucian carp is possible with water salinity up to 9 g/l (crucian carp has even colonized part of the Sea of Azov).
• Sometimes crucian carp are bred for live bait in order to catch predatory fish.
• Crucian carp reproduces quickly and without problems.
• Often, crucian carp are raised in a pond in order to feed them to other more valuable fish. This can be either throwing a pike into a pond where crucian carp is bred, or catching crucian carp and feeding the trout with crucian carp; often, crucian carp is used to prepare food for clarinet catfish.

Golden crucian carp in pond fish farming

Golden crucian carp is one of the most unpretentious and tenacious fish.

Crucian carp lives in silted, overgrown reservoirs, where the oxygen content decreases at times to 1-2 mg/l. Tolerating fluctuations in pH well, crucian carp does not withstand salinity of water to a salinity level above 10 g/l, as well as rapid water flow, but easily tolerates high temperatures - up to 35-36 ° C (the Baikal population of crucian carp can withstand temperatures up to 45 ° C). Even after being frozen into the ice, the golden crucian came to life after being removed from the ice “sarcophagus”. In peat quarries and silted reservoirs, crucian carp burrow to great depths, where they can survive rather long-term cooling of the bottom. Such features of the biology of golden crucian carp and high taste make it tempting to breed crucian carp in a pond at the dacha, where other fish cannot survive (for example, in a swamp, peat quarry, or other stagnant body of water). Goldfish can be an additional fish when growing more valuable fish species.

 

Spawning of golden crucian carp

Golden crucian carp matures in the 3rd-4th year of life, less often - in the 2nd, upon reaching a length of 13-15 cm and a weight of 160 g. For the first time, spawning males are often smaller (9-12 cm), weighing 1.00-120 g. This portion spawning fish. First, about 30% of the eggs are spawned, then another 20-25%, and the third portion - 40-50%.

How many eggs are there in crucian carp? Total fertility - 250 -350 thousand eggs, and for fish spawning for the first time - from 10 to 100 thousand eggs.
Another advantage of breeding golden crucian carp is its ability to spawn in the most seemingly unfavorable water bodies in terms of gas conditions - in shallow water with a depth of 30-50 cm, where there are aquatic plants - pondweed, cattail, reed rhizomes and other substrate. If there is no natural substrate, twigs, for example spruce branches of a coniferous tree, can be placed in the pond for this purpose.
When does spawning of crucian carp begin, spawning of crucian carp, water temperature? Spawning of crucian carp occurs at a temperature of 14-16°C; for the south of Russia and neighboring countries - this is March-April, for more northern regions - May - early June. The optimum temperature for egg development is 16-18°C. Usually spawning occurs in groups, with the participation of 2-3 females and 3-5 males. Portions are deposited at intervals of several days throughout the month.
It is interesting to watch how the golden crucian carp splash wildly during spawning.
Fertilized eggs are glued to the substrate and in this form are incubated, depending on the temperature, for 3-5 days. Thus, at 20°C the incubation process lasts about 90 hours, and at 23°C - 70 hours. The eggs are small, about 1.5 mm in diameter; can be of different colors - greenish, yellow, gray. Larvae 4 mm long swim at the surface of the water.
You can catch breeders for reproduction in a pond at any time of the year, but it is better in early spring. It is difficult to distinguish males from females; Usually the ratio is equal. Females are larger than males.
Ichthyological specialists determine sexual dimorphism by the ratio of the sizes of the fins and the body of golden crucian carp individuals: in males the relative height of the dorsal fin is greater than in females - 20.3-19.17o, and the ratio of the sizes of the pectoral fins is 18.5: 16.9% . If the spawners are caught in the spring, then the sex determination will be accurate - you just need to lightly press on the abdomen, and caviar or milt will appear.

 

Golden crucian larvae quickly switch to active feeding on zooplankton and microalgae. The fry, 2-4 cm in size, already feed on bottom organisms, crustaceans, and mollusks. Larger individuals - 10-15 cm - also feed on detritus.

Growth of golden crucian carp
How fast does crucian carp grow? How do crucian carp grow in a pond over the years - in the 1st year of life they grow to 5-8 cm and a weight of 10-15 g, in the 2nd -13-15 cm and a weight of 50-100 g, in the 3rd - 15 -17 cm and 110-180 g, on the 4th - 18-10 cm and 200-250 g.

Gold crucian carp growth chart

Age	Length cm	Weight g
1 year	5-8	10-15
2 year	13-15	50-100
3 year	15-17	110-180
4 year	18-20	200-250

The growth rate of silver crucian carp is very different from the growth rate of golden crucian carp; it depends on many factors and is discussed below.

Due to the slow growth of crucian carp, one cannot count on quickly obtaining marketable fish from the larvae. Golden crucian carp is not only an additional breeding object in ponds (where carp and other fish feel good and grow quickly), but is also irreplaceable (as, for example, tench, snakehead) in those reservoirs where, due to low oxygen content, in the water oxyphiles do not survive.

 

In low-flow ponds, golden crucian carp can be kept in a monoculture at the rate of 2-5 fingerlings and 1-2 two-year-olds per 1 m2. Young of the year grow slowly on natural food. But when fed with standard feed, they can reach a weight of 15-20 g in the 1st year of life and 100-150 g in the 2nd year. As an additional fish, golden crucian carp is grown at a more sparse stocking density: usually 0.5 pcs/m2 for fingerlings and 0.1 pcs/m2 for two-year-olds.

 

 

 

 

Silver crucian carp in pond fish farming

Silver crucian carp differs from gold carp in its faster growth rate. In ponds it can be larger than golden carp (up to 40-45 cm). Two forms live in Russia and neighboring countries - Asian-European and Chinese. The latter became the ancestor of the goldfish. The domestication of Chinese crucian carp (also known as golden chi or chiu) began during the Jin Dynasty (265-420 AD).
The technology for industrial breeding of goldfish has been developed in Ukraine. Telescopes, veiltails, comets and other fish can live in ordinary ponds and pools as decorative objects, pleasing the eye of the fishkeeper with their shape, unusually large fins and color.
Silver crucian carp has one remarkable feature: some of its populations can consist entirely of females - the eggs are fertilized by other fish. Therefore, if gold crucian carp, rudd, carp, tench and other carp fish live in ponds, there is no need to worry about the sex composition of the spawners and the reproduction of silver crucian carp.

 

Growth of silver crucian carp

How fast does crucian carp grow? The growth rate of silver crucian carp varies greatly. In the 70s In the lower reaches of the Dnieper, an unusually intensive growth of silver crucian carp was noted, which differed from crucian carp from other areas in that the sex ratio in the population was approximately equal, and in terms of growth rate it was not inferior to bream.

In the 2nd year, silver crucian carp reaches a length of 15.6 cm and a weight of 160 g; in the 3rd year, when it matures, it reaches 19-20 cm and a weight of 250-280 g. Usually, same-sex crucian carp reached such a weight only in the 5th year year of life.

Growth of crucian carp in a pond - when growing crucian carp in ponds with feeding, the growth rate of crucian carp greatly increases. Fingerlings of crucian carp gain 15-20 g of weight, two-year-old crucian carp - up to 400 g. The maximum weight of crucian carp can reach 3 kg.

Spawning of goldfish

Silver crucian carp reaches sexual maturity at the age of 1-2 years, in northern lakes at 3-4 years of age.
When does crucian carp spawn? The spawning of silver crucian carp coincides with the breeding period of other fish (May-June) spawning of crucian carp, water temperature is in the range of 14-20°C, but there are cases when spawning of crucian carp began at 9-12°C. Silver crucian carp, like gold carp, is a portion-spawning fish: the first time it spawns 50% of the total mass of eggs; the second and subsequent ones - within 20-25 days, when 15-20% of the total amount of eggs is spawned.

How many eggs are there in crucian carp? Total fecundity is related to the size of the female and ranges from 100 to 500 thousand eggs with a fish length of 13 to 30 cm.

How many crucian carp grow from one fish? For calculation, we can assume that one female produces 10-15 thousand fry.

The spawning of crucian carp proceeds as follows: crucian carp in shallow water lays sticky eggs in portions on aquatic plants.
In lakes overpopulated with silver crucian carp, where there are no predators, it quickly becomes smaller, resulting in the formation of isolated populations of small individuals 8-12 cm long (fishermen call such small crucian carp a box); it matures already at a body length of 5-6 cm, has low fertility - only 1-5 thousand eggs. The same pattern is inherent in reservoirs with periodic frosts, where the oxygen content can drop to 1-2 mg/l.
At a temperature of 18-20°C, silver crucian caviar develops in 3-4 days. The color of caviar, like that of golden crucian carp, can vary - from dark gray or green to light yellow. The main food of the larvae is zooplankton. Fry weighing 0.7-1.5 g switch to feeding on chironomid larvae and other benthic organisms. Fish weighing 5 g also eat feed of various recipes well.

 

Breeding crucian carp at home

In modern pond fish farming, which is most often focused on growing marketable carp, crucian carp are often considered an extraneous, trash fish. But breeding crucian carp in a pond at the dacha is very popular, because for small backyard ponds, crucian carp are simply irreplaceable, especially under unfavorable gas conditions.
The planting density of crucian carp is associated with two factors - water exchange and fish feeding.
Young of the year can be raised in ponds with constant water exchange; The stocking density of crucian carp is 5-10 pcs/m2, the average weight at the end of cultivation is 10-13 g. In the southern regions of Russia, where it is still hot at the end of summer, the weights increase to 15-20 g. In addition to natural food (plankton, worms , mollusks), for crucian carp feed and grain waste are added to the pond.

Wintering of crucian carp

Silver crucian carp can overwinter in the same pond where it lived in the first year, if the depth of the non-freezing water column is at least 1 m. In order to improve the gas regime, it is advisable to have ice holes or ensure water flow. If the pond is small, it can be insulated, for example by building a greenhouse over it. Fish farmers sometimes use boards made of boards, but best of all are bundles of reeds, which are specially frozen into ice, using the ability of the stems to allow air to pass through. In winter, it is possible to breed crucian carp in a barrel or a swimming pool-bath, which are installed indoors for the winter. In villages near Kiev, crucian carp spend the winter in basements where subsoil water accumulates.

 

How much crucian carp can you grow in 1 square meter?

What is the maximum stocking density for crucian carp? The maximum stocking density of crucian carp depends on a number of factors. Yearlings of silver crucian carp can be raised in a flow-through pond with feeding at a stocking density of 3-5 pcs/m2. In the absence of flow, the density decreases by 2-3 times, and if they grow only due to the food reserves of the pond, then only 1 specimen can exist per 1 m2.

How quickly does crucian carp grow in a pond over the summer? The growth rate of crucian carp depends on the weight of the yearling. The average weight of two-year-old crucian carp will depend on the initial weight (yearling). If it was 10 g, then in the fall you can expect a weight of 100-120 g. With a yearling weight of 15-20 g, two-year-olds can gain a weight of up to 200-300 g. The average weight of marketable crucian carp is 280 g. In terms of meat quality and fat content, silver crucian carp is not inferior carp To grow 100 kg of silver crucian carp using only artificial feeding, you will need 300-400 kg of plant feed (cereals, mixed feed and various types of agricultural waste). So how quickly crucian carp grows from a fry to a big fish depends on feeding and other factors.

Feeding crucian carp in a pond

How to feed crucian carp in a pond? Feed can be placed directly into the pond if its bottom is not silted. If the silt layer is thicker than 5-10 cm, it is better to install a feeder in the form of a wooden table. The pop-up stern table is a wooden shield with low sides (2-3 cm high) measuring 60x60 cm, mounted on a special pole. At the hole that is made in the middle of the feeding table, two pairs cheek boards 5-7 cm wide, which serve as guides when placing the table on a pole driven into the bottom. The table is periodically raised to check that all the food has been eaten. With the help of these cheeks the table is held at the bottom. The length of the cheek boards and the pole driven into the bottom exceeds the depth of the pond by 7-10 cm.
The table can be permanently fixed to the bottom. In this case, there is no need to drive in the pole. Using a weight or fastenings, the table is held at the bottom from floating.
When breeding crucian carp at home for beginners, you must remember that the growth rate of crucian carp depends on the frequency of feeding. It is best to feed goldfish fry 2-3 times a day and at least once a week. In the latter case, one cannot count on rapid growth of the fish.
The amount of food given to goldfish fingerlings daily depends on the water temperature and the size of the fish. Juveniles should be accustomed to food 2-3 weeks after the ungrown larvae are introduced into the pond.
With a stocking density of 5-10 pcs/m2, the amount of feed given to silver crucian carp must correspond to the standards given in Table 120.
Feeding standards for crucian carp. When breeding crucian carp at home, you must remember that overwintered crucian carp begin to feed at 8-12°C, but they can be accustomed to food at a temperature of 6-7°C. To do this, it is necessary to add food to the pond at the rate of 0.5-1.0% of the average weight of crucian carp. Then, with an increase in water temperature, feed is distributed according to the schedule (Table 121). In this case, the planting density of yearlings is 0.5-1.0 pcs/m2.

Table 120. Feeding standards for silver crucian carp fingerlings (% of the average weight of fish) by month

Index	Feeding date
	June			July			August			September
	10	20	30	10	20	30	10	20	30	10
Average weight of fish, g	0,1	0,5	1	2	3	7	10	12	15	20
t water, °C
14	20	12	9	8	7	5,5	5,2	4,6	4,4	3,5
16	22	16	14	12	10	8,5	7,5	7	6,7	5
18	24	22	19	14	13	11,2	10,5	10	9	7
20 or more	25	24	23	20	17	14	13	12	11	8,5

Monitoring the food intake in the pond by installing a feeding table is carried out regularly. It is slowly lifted out of the water and inspected, while simultaneously cleaning it of silt and algae. You can also use a net made of dense material and attached to a stick. The net is lowered into the water at the feeding site and used to collect the remaining feed. If food is not eaten within a day, you should reduce its amount by checking the gas regime and the condition of the fish.
When breeding crucian carp in a pond at the dacha, it is necessary to periodically adjust the daily feeding rate. To adjust the daily feeding rate, control fishing and weighing of fish are carried out regularly, once every 7-10 days.

The optimal temperature for the growth of crucian carp is 24-32°C.

Table 121. Feeding rate for two-year-old crucian carp depending on the average weight (g) and water temperature

 

t water, °C	Weight, g
	20	30	50	70	100	200	300	400
11	1,7	1,6	1,5	1,4	1,3	1,2	0,9	0,5
12	3,3	3,1	2,9	2,8	2,7	1,8	1,6	0,7
14	6,5	6,1	5,7	5,5	4,6	3,1	3	2,3
16	9,5	9	8,5	7,9	7,5	6,5	4,4	3,4
18	13	12,5	11,5	10,9	10,5	8,9	6,2	4,5
20 or more	17	16	14,5	14	13,5	12	8	6

During the period of raising crucian carp, the water temperature, its quality, the condition of the fish, the palatability of feed, and the state of the natural food supply are regularly monitored.

 

Crucian carp as an invasive species

As strange as it may seem, silver crucian carp is one of the 100 most dangerous invasive species in Russia.
Why did silver carp deserve such a rating?
The fact is that when silver crucian carp finds itself in new reservoirs, it very quickly increases its numbers. Thus, the silver crucian carp undermines the food supply for other fish, creating very great competition for them, and the crucian carp also brings new diseases and parasites. Silver crucian carp actively eats planktonic crustaceans that consume phytoplankton, which can lead to algal blooms in the reservoir. In search of food, silver crucian carp stirs up the water in a reservoir with a muddy bottom, which can lead to inhibition of macrophytes. The cyanobacteria swallowed by the silver crucian carp, having passed through the digestive system of the crucian carp, remain unharmed and only intensify their activity.
When silver crucian carp gets into a reservoir where local golden carp lives, it creates new hybrids with it.
For this reason, in many European countries, as well as on large aquatic farms, silver crucian carp is considered a trash fish, the number of which must be reduced. Moreover, usually, crucian carp is cheaper to engage in its targeted cultivation, to the detriment of valuable fish species.
As a rule, silver crucian carp are fought in aquaculture by releasing predatory fish - pike - into the reservoir; a complete drainage of water from the reservoir can also be used in order to completely eliminate the silver crucian carp, but this method is quite complicated, especially since the crucian carp may well burrow into the silt and wait a very long time until the reservoir is filled again.

 

References

Fish Farmer's Handbook. IN AND. Goat V

Reshetnikov A.N., Zibrova M.G., Vekhov D.A., Dgebuadze Yu.Yu. 2018. Carassius auratus complex – silver crucian carp. The most dangerous invasive species in Russia (TOP-100), p. 528–537.

Cherednikov S.Yu., Lukyanov S., Chepurnaya T.A., Vlasenko E.S., Zhivoglyadov A.A. 2017. Population status and fishing prospects for silver crucian carp Carassius gibelio (Bloch, 1782) in the Russian part of the Azov basin. Proceedings of AzNIIKH, 1: 148–152.