Sea needle fish. Sea needle What does the needle fish eat

The Black Sea is a place of accumulation of living organisms that lead an aggressive lifestyle. Big predators eat small predators. How to survive in this world if nature has deprived you of sharp teeth, long spikes, poisonous tentacles? He did not come out with growth and strength, one has to rely on the ability to disguise himself among the environment. Today we will talk about a marine life that disguises itself as long sandy threads of algae. Sea needle is the hero of our story. Over time, evolution has made amazing changes with the body of the fish that allow it to exist in the aggressive underwater world.

Appearance

The needle fish got its name because of the disproportionately elongated body, resembling a needle or pike. The body is not compressed from the sides, with a detailed examination, the edges are visible. An igloo fish could also be called a floating pencil. The body has small dorsal and pectoral fins, and a small crest is located on the top of the head. The shape of the fins does not allow the needle to travel long distances.

A snout with a long nose and a small mouth. The color of the fish changes depending on the color of the external environment. In Anapa, on sandbanks, the needle has a light green, almost transparent outfit, if a current or a storm carries the fish to stone beaches, then the color becomes darker. The usual height of a floating pencil is 15 or 25 centimeters, the life time is about 8 - 10 years.

habits

As it became clear, the needle fish is not a champion swimmer, movement across the sea for the fish depends on underwater currents and waves. Therefore, the main goal when driving is a timely stop in a suitable place. To do this, you need to hook on seaweed with your tail. In the thickets of sea grass, the needle feels safe, and most importantly, there is plenty of your favorite treat - the smallest plankton or crustacean larvae. All the diversity, invisible to the human eye of organisms, the needle draws in through its small mouth at the tip of the muzzle. The dinner ritual is a favorite business of the sea needle, adults can drain larvae for up to 10 hours in a row.

The second most important occupation is reproduction. With the beginning of summer, when the sea off the coast of Anapa begins to warm up, needles prepare for breeding. To attract a female, the male performs certain body movements that the bride should like. After that, the couple is intertwined with long bodies. During close hugs, the female sea-pipe lays her eggs in a special leather bag, which the future father of the offspring has. In the body compartment, fertilization and painstaking gestation of eggs takes place. After maturation of caviar, small needles can hide from danger in their father's backpack for some time. The marsupial feature of caring for offspring makes the sea needle a truly unique inhabitant of the waters.

Researchers of the marine flora of Anapa noticed that the needle has the ability to make sounds. If you hold a needle fish in your fist, you can feel the faint vibrations and quiet sound waves that the fish emits into the air. To date, scientists cannot establish why the marine life needed such a skill.

Where to see in Anapa

Not so long ago, all shallow water was a favorite habitat for needle fish. Today, due to the active development of the resort's embankments, the ecological state of the aquatic environment has changed. The consequences of human activity do not allow the needle to live quietly within the city. An igloo in Anapa can only be found on the secluded beaches of Vityazevo or the Bugaz Spit.

There are already a lot of different inhabitants in your aquarium, but you want to see among them needle fish. True, you have many questions and doubts: what kind of fish it is, how to properly care for it, whether it is prone to disease and whether it can get along with other brethren. In this article we will talk about the correct maintenance and breeding of needlefish.

In general, needle fish are marine and brackish. Although some of its representatives live in fresh water. They live, as a rule, in the coastal zone of tropical and temperate waters. They are most comfortable near sandy shores, in thickets of algae, corals.

By the way, some species are always in the thickness (for example, the inhabitant of the Black Sea is a pelagic fish-needle).

The needle fish is strongly elongated, at the end of its head there is a tubular snout. She has no fins on her abdomen, on the tail it is either very small or absent. The fish has a long, flexible tail, it can “grab” algae with it. These fish cannot be called good swimmers, they swim rather clumsily and at low speed.
Their color is extremely changeable, it is red, yellow, green, gray with spots, white, etc. Some representatives are able to change color according to the conditions around them.

Its size varies depending on the species - from 2.5 to 50 cm.

Common Species of Marine Needlefish

The sea needlefish has several genera. The most common is Syngnathus, in other words, the common needle fish (there are more than 50 species). She has a caudal and pectoral fins, the front of the body has a hexagonal shape, the back has four.

Did you know? In the African lake Malawi live fish - cichlids. Their females carry fry in ... their mouths. During pregnancy, mothers refuse to eat.

There are also Neropsis, or serpentine needles, they are much smaller. The fish have a very thin body, caudal and pectoral fins are absent. They really look like a needle or an awl.

Another genus is Penetopteryx, that is, featherless sea needles. These representatives also do not have fins. Settle in the wreckage of coral reefs, diving into the sand in case of danger.

The needlefish eats mainly small planktonic crustaceans, drawing them into itself with its snout when they swim closer than 4 cm.
Also needle like other small fish, frogs, shrimps, tadpoles and nauplii.

Needles like to jump out of the water, and quite high, so the tank should be covered from above.

Line the bottom with fine sand, Java moss is a suitable plant. Remember that needles love shelters made of pebbles, snags, crevices, caves.

Aeration of water, biological filtration - are needed by all means! Once a week, renew the water (a third of the volume).
Some people add salt to the water. But, as practice has shown, the fish is fine in fresh water.

Important! When cleaning the fish “house”, remember about the sharp teeth of the needle fish, otherwise you will be bitten.

As you already understood, the needle is a predatory fish. But, in principle, not aggressive. It is recommended to keep it together with other large and calm fish, which it will not be able to devour.

Avoid its proximity to overly active, restless fish, for example,.

In general, there are no intraspecific conflicts. Prefers to stay in a small flock of three or four brothers.

Spawning begins in mid-spring and ends at the end of July. To “provoke” this process, feed small live fish to your pets for two weeks, and also change their water every day.

In these fish, the offspring is... the male. He has a special chamber for eggs, consisting of two folds of skin on the sides of the body, the folds are bent over the abdomen, thereby covering future children.

Before this, the female wraps herself around the male, laying eggs in this so-called "bag", where about 100 eggs are placed. Their father fertilizes and bears them. After about 10 days, fry appear, but they are still a little in the folds.
Even getting out, the kids rush to the "bag" of the father in case of danger, and also when it becomes dark. In general, it is advised to provide the male with a separate tank, where he can calmly and safely deal with offspring.

Important! With insufficient nutrition, the male often begins to eat his future children. Therefore, during this period, take care of a complete diet for him.

Fish diseases

Needle - fish are quite interesting. But, as you can see, they are not so easy to care for. When settling them in an aquarium, you need to think through everything to the smallest detail, because this fish will get along only with equal or larger brothers.

If you decide to start exclusively this species, then do not worry. Follow the breeding rules and you will definitely succeed!

Comes from Southeast Asia. The habitat extends from Pakistan and India further east - Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand. Wild populations were brought to the islands of Hawaii, where they successfully took root.
Inhabit slow-moving rivers and streams, swamps. During the rainy season, as the water level rises, they swim into faster rivers, artificial and irrigation canals. They prefer poorly lit places with dense coastal vegetation.

Brief information:

• The volume of the aquarium - from 500 liters.
• Temperature - 22–28°C
• pH value - 6.0–8.0
• Water hardness - soft to medium hard (2-15 dGH)
• Substrate type - any
• Lighting - subdued
• Brackish water - no
• Water movement - low/moderate
• Fish size - up to 35 cm.
• Nutrition - live and fresh food
• Temperament - peaceful
• Keeping in a group of 3-4 individuals

Description

Adult individuals reach a length of up to 35 cm. A characteristic feature of the species is the structure of the body - very thin and very elongated. Thanks to this shape, the fish got one of its names "Silver Needle". Sexual dimorphism is weakly expressed. Nevertheless, the male is quite easy to distinguish from the female. In males, the dorsal and anal fins have a black border. In addition, during the mating season, a small hump grows behind the head, the lower jaw acquires a reddish tint, and the abdomen becomes yellow-gold.

Nutrition

Predator, in nature feeds on small fish and insects. In a home aquarium, adults should be fed strips of fish meat, shrimp, mussels, large earthworms, flies, crickets, and other insects. Young specimens can be content with small earthworms, pieces of shrimp.

Maintenance and care, arrangement of the aquarium

The optimal size of the tank for 3-4 fish starts from 500 liters, the depth should be at least 30 cm. The design should provide for dense clusters of plants placed along the walls of the aquarium, thus preserving free areas for swimming. The lighting is subdued. The presence of plants floating on the surface and hanging over the water is welcome. Since they serve as an additional means of shading, in this case it will be necessary to increase the brightness of the light. Other decorative elements and soil are selected at the discretion of the aquarist.
A productive filtration system is a must when keeping predatory species. In addition to the power of the filter, you should pay attention to what and how the purified water returns. Depending on the models and types of filters, water is returned in various ways, some of which create excessive flow. In the case of the Freshwater pipefish, the internal current should be kept to a minimum.
The high quality of water is also maintained by its weekly change (by 20-30% of the volume) and regular removal of organic waste from the surface of the substrate and decorative elements.

Behavior and Compatibility

Predatory, but not aggressive. The garfish is able to get along with other calm fish that are large enough to fit in his mouth. It is worth avoiding the settlement of overly active and restless species, such as Barbs. There are no intraspecific conflicts. It prefers to stay in a small flock of three to four individuals.

Breeding / breeding

Breeding needlefish in a home aquarium is difficult due to the need to recreate the changes in habitat conditions that occur in nature. The mating season occurs from May to September, when a large amount of precipitation falls in Southeast Asia, changing the hydrochemical composition of the water and lowering its temperature. The female lays several eggs daily, fixing them to the flooded vegetation with thin sticky threads. The incubation period lasts from 7 to 10 days. The hatched fry feed on zooplankton. As they mature, larger fish may eat their smaller counterparts.

Such kinship introduced one peculiarity into the process of reproduction of these fish - the male goes “pregnant” with them. In addition, he can choose whose eggs he will hatch, and whose - not.

Sea needles live in tropical and temperate seas, including the Black Sea.

This small fish is somewhat reminiscent of a snake or a stick. She has a long and thin body, which is covered with a shell with bony trunk rings.

Long and thin body of the marine needle

The length of their body can be different - from 2.5 to 30 centimeters. It all depends on the type of fish.

They don't swim very well. Like seahorses, some species have prehensile tails that they use to grab onto plants to avoid being swept away by the current.

The muzzle of the marine needle is very elongated and occupies more than half the length of the head. At its end is a small, toothless mouth. Therefore, they suck their food along with water.

The needles feed on small fish and plankton, for which sometimes they have to descend to a depth of 90 meters. But most often the fish stay at a depth of no more than 10 meters, among the vegetation of coral reefs and stones.

Bright green coloring allows the fish to perfectly camouflage in the algae

Their almost vertical swimming provides good camouflage for algae. In addition, the color easily changes depending on the environment: brown, bright green, red, purple, speckled gray, etc. This allows the fish to remain undetected by enemies.

They have a very unusual process of reproduction. Like the closest relatives - seahorses - the offspring of the sea needle bears the male. He has a special brood pouch, which is a pouch between two folds on the abdomen.

Spawning at the sea needle begins in spring and continues all summer. The male takes eggs from several females for the entire period. Although some types of saltwater pipefish are monogamous and "remain faithful" to only one female. Though it pleases. But most often, females lay eggs in several partners, because. this increases the chances of juvenile survival.

A male's pouch can hold up to 1500 eggs. The gestation period lasts about a month. After that, miniature copies of their parents come out of the bag, and an independent life begins. But paternal care is also manifested after the hatching of the fry. For some time, the male continues to carry them in his bag. When he arches his belly up, the bag opens and the kids go for a walk. In case of danger, the fry quickly climb back.

But that is not all. Earlier this year, biologists at the University of Texas found that the male can get rid of unwanted "pregnancies." It can regulate the survival rate of embryos by choosing the most promising and attractive female eggs. Then the possibility of hatching into the light of fry from the strongest and healthiest female increases. The process of survival, nothing more.

Needle fish, arrow fish, spindle, silver needle, sea pike - all these trivial names belong to one of the most interesting representatives of the class of ray-finned fish. In the scientific world, it is known as a garfish.

The unusual appearance and high nutritional value of the meat made the sea schooling fish an object of active fishing. Dishes from garfish are distinguished by their unusual appearance and excellent taste.

Appearance, nutrition, behavior and reproduction

The name "arrow" garfish was not accidental. A predatory fish is capable of making lightning-fast jerks in pursuit of prey, jumping out of the water and developing high speed. This is facilitated by the ideal structure of the fish from the point of view of aerodynamics: the body is long, slightly laterally compressed, covered with very small cycloid scales. In a calm state, the garfish moves, wriggling like a snake (hence another nickname - spindle).

Interesting fact! Sargan jumps out of the water to overcome the obstacle. These can be objects floating on the surface of the water, including fishing boats. There are cases when fish injured people.

When playing, the garfish makes high jumps-candles and can wrap itself with fishing line several times

Thin elongated jaws, similar to the beak of a prehistoric pterodactyl, with many small sharp teeth, help to capture and hold the victim. The upper jaw of the needlefish is shorter than the lower.

The younger the individual, the longer its lower jaw. It can be 3/4 of the length of the entire head.

The green and blue back and silvery sides of the garfish are in harmony with the general color of the sea water.

In addition to the back, the bones of the garfish are painted green. The non-standard shade is due to the presence in their composition of the coloring bile pigment - biliverdin, which is also present in the human body. The photo shows what the spine of the fish looks like.

Coloring pigment is not dangerous to human health

A typical marine pelagic fish, the garfish stays in deeper layers during daylight hours, rises to the surface of the reservoir on a moonless night.

The basis of the diet of the garfish is made up of small fish: anchovy, sprat, herring, young mackerel and herring. In search of food, the predator migrates over considerable distances. For example, following the anchovy, it can move from the Black Sea to the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov and Sivash.

The puberty of needle fish occurs by 3–6 years of age. Females spawn in small portions, so spawning lasts several months (usually from early May to mid-August, in the Black Sea - from late April to mid-October). There is no fishing ban during this period.

Garfish and needle fish - one class, different families

There is a common misconception that garfish and needlefish are synonymous names for the same fish. Actually it is not. Needle fish is a representative of marine fish of the needle family (a detachment of sticklebacks). Its close relative is the seahorse.

The genus includes more than 50 species:

• common marine needle;
• Italian needle fish (other names: Black Sea needle, small needle);
• spiny fish-needle;
• northern sea needle;
• small-nosed needlefish;
• long-snouted fish-needle;
• thin-nosed needlefish and others.

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

The color of needles depends on the reservoir of habitat: usually it is yellow, green, reddish tones.

The needlefish has an elongated tubular mouth (snout) with a characteristic extension at the end.

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

Needles live in the Black, Azov, Caspian, Baltic Seas, enter the rivers and lakes associated with them. Sea long-snouted needlefish is an object of hunting for tourists. It is caught by hand in coastal areas, dried and taken away as a souvenir.

Some species are freshwater. River needlefish is found in the Volga, the lower reaches of the Don, some reservoirs (Kuibyshev, Volgograd, Rybinsk, Tsimlyansk).

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

The name of the fish was due to the strongly protruding gill covers.

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

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

Types and habitats of the garfish

The garfish family includes 25 species. Fish are classified mainly according to the area where they are found.

In commercial terms, the most interesting are:

• european garfish(other names: Atlantic, common). The most common species has chosen the moderately warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean, Marmara, Black, Azov Seas (its western, more salty water area). Sometimes the common garfish is caught in the White and Barents Seas. The growth of adults rarely exceeds 90 cm. The Black Sea fish is singled out as a separate subspecies. It differs from the European one in its more modest size (up to 60 cm);
• crocodile garfish(other names - crocodile tilozur, giant garfish), the largest representative of the family, growing up to 1.5 meters. The weight of trophy specimens is 6.5–7.5 kg. It lives in the tropical waters of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The name was given for the hard scales and its peculiar color, reminiscent of the skin of a crocodile;
• Far Eastern or Pacific garfish: distinguished by a narrow bluish longitudinal stripe with a silvery tint and the absence of gill rakers; the heat-loving species is most common in the southern waters of the Sea of ​​Japan, off the coast of Korea and China (to the South China Sea), in the Pacific Ocean south of Hokkaido. In Russia, fish are caught in Primorye. Garfish as a seasonal migrant in the summer enters the Peter the Great Bay and the channels of salt lakes in the south of the region. In catches, specimens weighing up to 1 kg and up to 1 m long are usually found. With a decrease in water temperature to 15 ° C, it goes south;
• black-tailed garfish: an inhabitant of the coastal waters of South Asia was named for the large black spots on the caudal fin. During low tides, fish often remain in the drained zone, burrowing into silt or sand to a depth of 50 cm.

Most species prefer to stay close to the coast, some (for example, tropical ribbon-like garfish) go to the open ocean.

There are 5 species of the garfish family that live in fresh water bodies. They are found in the rivers of South America, Southeast Asia, Northern Australia.

Nutritional value, cooking recipes

Needlefish, especially caught in autumn, are tasty and quite oily. The absence of small bones makes it a desirable product in the kitchen. Meat has a lot of useful properties. It contains a large amount of polyunsaturated aliphatic acids of the Omega group. They are necessary to increase immunity, normalize the work of all vital systems, and even out hormonal levels. Thanks to fatty acids, there is a general rejuvenation of the body.

Dishes from garfish are good for the health of the thyroid gland: there is a lot of iodine in the fish.
Fish meat is rich in phosphorus. A macronutrient is needed to maintain muscle activity, brain activity, and bone tissue growth.

There are many recipes for cooking a sea predator. The fish menu includes marinated, boiled, fried, baked garfish. Smoked needle fish has excellent taste.

Hot smoked garfish

Fish is prepared in a special smokehouse (can be replaced with a massive pan or bucket with a tight lid).

Operating procedure:

• pour wood chips (ideally aspen or juniper) on the bottom of the smokehouse, put on fire;
• prepare the fish: you can not gut a small garfish, a large one must be cleaned of the insides, put any greens (dill, parsley) in the abdomen;
• rub the fish with salt, put on the grill of the smokehouse.

Garfish in the smokehouse is kept until cooked, usually the process takes about 40 minutes

The garfish is kept in a smokehouse until cooked, usually the process takes about 40 minutes. Some semblance of hot smoked fish can be cooked in the oven. For this, the peeled garfish is first rubbed with salt, then coated with “liquid smoke”, placed in a baking bag and sent to the oven for 50 minutes.

Cold smoked needlefish

The process of cold smoking is long and laborious, but the garfish prepared in this way can be stored for up to a year without losing its taste.

Step by step recipe:

• clean the fish, put it on a twine (this is convenient to do through the eyes), salt, leave to stand for 3-5 days;
• remove excess salt: to do this, place the fish for 1-2 hours in cold water, then rinse;
• dry the garfish in the open air for 2-3 days. For best results, pre-insert wooden sticks into the bellies;
• place the fish hanging in a high smokehouse (for example, from barrels) with sawdust from alder or juniper: they give fragrant cold smoke. The temperature of the smoke must not exceed 25º C.

The process of smoking itself takes from 1 to 6 days, depending on the size of the fish. Readiness is determined by the appearance of the garfish: it becomes dry, the surface acquires a golden brown hue.

Recipes for preparing an old dish are varied. In general, shkara is a fish stewed in its own juice.

For 5-7 pieces of garfish we need:

• 3-4 pieces of onions (the more, the tastier);
• a can of olives (pitted and without fillers);
• 2 lemons;
• butter;
• vegetable oil (preferably olive);
• salt, pepper, bay leaf (to taste).

In addition to food, you need to prepare in advance: 2 pans (main and auxiliary), toothpicks according to the number of fish.

There should be enough fish so that, rolled up in rings, it fills the pan tightly

Step by step recipe:

1. Cut a part of the lemon together with the zest into small pieces, fill the olives with them.
2. In the main pan, melt a piece of butter over low heat, then put a few pieces of bay leaf.
3. Roll the fish into rings, securing along the abdomen with toothpicks; fry in an auxiliary pan for 10 seconds on each side in well-heated vegetable oil, then remove the toothpicks.
4. Cut the onion into rings, put in a dense layer on the bottom of the pan, after removing the bay leaf from there.
5. On the onion pillow, lay the rings of fish with their bellies down tightly to each other, salt and pepper.
6. Put olives stuffed with lemon and a small piece of butter in each ring.
7. Top the fish with a dense layer of onion rings and pour generously with lemon juice.
8. Add some water to cover the fish.
9. Close the lid, simmer on low heat for 20 minutes.

Advice! Until the end of the stewing process, you do not need to remove the lid: this way the dish will fully retain the aroma.

Sprats

To prepare sprats, you will need gutted garfish carcasses without a head and tail, vegetable oil, black peppercorns (or a mixture of peppers), bay leaf, and salt.

Cooking:

• cut the fish into pieces of about 5 cm, place tightly in a pan in an upright position;
• add salt, pepper, bay leaf to taste;
• pour vegetable oil so that the fish is completely covered;
• simmer covered over low heat for about 3 hours.

Such sprats can be stored in the refrigerator in glass jars.

A beautiful swift predator is an object of commercial fishing. Mining is carried out mainly off the coast of Crimea, in the Kerch Strait. Amateur sea fishing (if long-range gear is available) is possible in spring and autumn, when needlefish come close to the shore. By this time, the fish managed to work up fat, its meat becomes tender and juicy. They put on the hook what the garfish usually eats: anchovy, pieces of herring, mussel and shrimp meat. The predator reacts well to chicken meat. It is possible to use artificial lures: floating wobblers and small lures.