Dnieper chub
📖 Overview
Adults inhabit lowland rivers, lower reaches of montane rivers, limans, lakes, deltas, backwaters with moderate to no current. They prefer to stay in warm water with temperatures up to 30-32° C, on sand, sand-mud or mud bottom, and in shallow places with slow current along banks, in backwaters, in small lakes and similar calm-water sites. Can tolerate slightly brackish water and low oxygen concentrations. Feed predominantly on insects and their larvae, but also takes plankton, benthic invertebrates and algae. Form spawning groups of up to 150 individuals. They do not undertake migration but move to deeper places in winter. Sharp decline of some populations is due to drainage of flood-plains and channelization of river beds .
🔬 Taxonomy
🐟 Physical Description
Dorsal spines (total): 3 - 4; Dorsal soft rays (total): 8 - 10; Anal spines: 3 - 4; Anal soft rays: 9 - 12; Vertebrae: 36 - 38. Differs from Petroleuciscus smyrnaeus by having the following characters: dorsal fin with 8-9½ branched rays; ; anal fin with 9-10½ branched rays; iris orange to red; lateral line with 33-40 scales; posterior margin of anal convex or almost straight; without back pigments along free margin of each flank scale .: fusiform / normal.
🌀 Behaviour
Behavioural data for Dnieper chub is currently being reviewed.
🦐 Diet
Diet information for Dnieper chub is currently being compiled.
🥚 Reproduction
Form spawning groups of up to 150 individuals . Asynchronous spawning, occurs two or three times in the season from the beginning of May to June . A hermaphrodite specimen was found, having a pair of testes and an ovary, the eggs being degenerated .
🌍 Habitat & Distribution
Freshwater; brackish; benthopelagic. Temperate; 56°N - 39°N, 26°E - 47°E central Turkey (missing in Don); Aegean Sea basin, from Strma drainage eastward in Europe; northwestern Turkey.
🌿 Ecology
📐 Morphometrics
🛡️ Conservation Assessment
📊 Population Risk & Fisheries
🔍 Similar Species
🗺️ Global Occurrence Map
Occurrence records from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) - 19 records indexed .
👥 Community & Contribute
No observations yet - be the first to log one!
View all observations for Dnieper chub ↗Spotted incorrect or outdated data? Submit a correction and our editorial team will review it. Approved edits go live within 48 hours.
Found a factual error, broken data, or inappropriate content? Let us know and we will investigate promptly.