Golden Tench

The Golden Tench belongs to the family of fish, collectively called cyprinids or the carp family. Like Common Tench, it has a high, thick and short body with scales which are deeply embedded in the skin and covered with slime. Golden Tench is an artificially bred variety of Tench and differs from the latter by the saturated golden color of its scales. This fish is undemanding as regards the quality of water and may be artificially bred in ponds. It prefers still water, overgrown with cane, and is rather warmth-loving. Usually it prefers quiet backwaters. It may inhabit water bodies that are turning into marshes with acidic water. It leads a sedentary lifestyle. The Golden Tench stays in the bottom water and avoids sunlight. It feeds on bottom water invertebrates (insect larvae, worms, mollusks), extracting them from silt at 7-9 cm depth. Full-grown fish feed on underwater plants and detritus as well as living creatures. The mouth of the Golden Tench is very small, on each corner of it there is one short barbel. Its elongated and hook-shaped pharyngeal teeth form one row. The fins are rounded in shape. Its average body length is about 20 to 40 cm. A large Tench may reach a length of 70 cm and a weight exceeding 7 kg.