Despite the vast expanses of our country, there is no such place in it, except for the Kola Peninsula, where crucian fish would not be found - one of the typical representatives of cyprinids.
All bodies of stagnant water, be it a sand or stone quarry or a man-made dam, a natural lake, a watery swamp or a calm stream with a slow flow of water, are always full of them. Carp fish breeds well where there is a lot of vegetation and silt at the bottom. After all, this gives her stable food - worms, algae, mosquito larvae and other insects. During the hottest summer months, you can watch them rise closer to the surface of the water, choosing places shaded by bushes or trees near the shore, and remain there motionless, as if enjoying the warmth.
In our reservoirs there are two types of crucian fish. One was called gold, the other silver. The first of them is absolutely natural and has a more rounded body shape. Silver - bred by breeders in fish farms, but also took root well in natural reservoirs and abundantlybreeds on a par with the golden "brother", which in central Russia reaches a length of up to twenty-five centimeters and a weight of six hundred to seven hundred grams. Although many fishermen boast that they managed to catch a two-kilogram golden carp, this is more the exception than the rule. In the reservoirs of fish farms, where the fish are intensively fed with compound feed and grain, silver crucian fish reaches forty-five centimeters in length and can weigh up to four kilograms, but when it gets into natural conditions, it rarely exceeds the golden one in size and is slightly inferior to it in weight.
In late autumn, when the temperature of the air and water drops significantly, active fishing stops. This fish is not always easy to catch in the spring. As soon as the gardens bloom, and the water temperature reaches fifteen degrees, spawning time begins in the reservoirs. Then the fish will stop taking the bait. For crucian carp, this period coincides with the time of rosehip flowering and continues throughout May-June.
True, there is a secret here. The one who owns it knows how to catch crucian in the spring. The fact is that this species of fish spawns unevenly. Within a month and a half, it either calms down, and the crucian begins to take the bait and is caught on a hook, then it rises again, and the fishing stops. Periods replace each other at least three times per season.
Normal fishing begins only from the time when the bird cherry begins to bloom, and every day more and more actively and better. Gear for crucian uncomplicated - thisa fishing rod with a length of at least four meters with a fishing line 0.2-0.3 mm thick, in the color of algae, and with a light, very sensitive float. The hook should be with a straight bend and on a shortened shank. As bait, they use a dung worm, maggot, a crumb of bread with boiled potatoes and cottage cheese, or hard balls of undercooked potatoes, dough flavored with vegetable oil. The best fishing time is early dawn in the morning or evening, although goldfish are not averse to taking the bait during the day.
