Wild Carp

Wild carp is a freshwater fish of cyprinid family in the order Cypriniformes. It inhabits the basins of the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov, the Aral Sea, the Caspian Sea, The Amur River and Lake Kapchagai. Wild carp has become acclimatized successfully in numerous river bodies of Central and West Siberia, the Kamchatka peninsula and Central Asia. In spring and early summer wild carp mainly feeds on young sprouts of pondweed, water-lily, bulrush and other aquatic plants. Wild carp is covered with dark golden scales, that have bluish shade on the back and get lighter near the belly. Despite its seeming resemblance to crucian carp, wild carp can be recognized by its narrower body. Its dark gray dorsal fin is wider than that of other carp species and is distinguished by its very strong saw-like serrate front ray. All lower fins are grayish violet, the caudal fin is tawny-red, the eyes are golden. The average length of an adult specimen is between 40 and 80 cm. Rare specimens exceed 1 m in length and weight more than 20 kg.