Arctic grayling

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Arctic grayling
Arctic grayling

Arctic grayling

Systematics
Overcohort : Clupeocephala
Cohort : Euteleosteomorpha
Order : Salmonid fish (Salmoniformes)
Family : Salmon fish (Salmonidae)
Genre : Grayling ( thymallus )
Type : Arctic grayling
Scientific name
Thymallus arcticus
( Pallas , 1776)

The arctic grayling ( Thymallus arcticus ) is a bony fish from the Salmonidae family .

features

Arctic grayling has a trout-like build with a noticeably enlarged dorsal fin and a small mouth. Their back is deep purple, black-blue or blue-gray, the flanks are dark blue to gray with a pink sheen and scattered dark points and a dark longitudinal stripe between the pectoral and pelvic fins. The belly is gray to white. The large dorsal fin has 17 to 25 soft rays and extends to the adipose fin in the male when put on and is dark blue-violet with rows of reddish to orange or purple to green dots in the rear area and a narrow purple border. The pelvic fins are relatively long and reach the anal fin in the males . They are dark yellow in color with irregular orange-red stripes. The other fins are dark. The anal fin has 11 to 15 soft rays. The number of gill spines is 14 to 22, mostly 16 to 17, the number of vertebrae 58 to 62. In contrast to the European grayling, the upper jaw only extends to about the middle of the eye.

The animals reach an average length of about 34 centimeters. The maximum dimensions, depending on the source, are 45 centimeters and 1.9 kilograms to 76 centimeters and 3.8 kilograms.

Way of life

Arctic grayling colonize cold, clear, medium-sized to large glacier and mountain rivers and lakes with a high oxygen content. They form medium-sized schools and feed on benthic organisms and small fish. In April to May they migrate upriver to spawn in fast-flowing mountain streams on gravelly ground in May to June . The males are more brightly colored at spawning time. In late summer they migrate back to larger bodies of water, where they winter in deep places.

Occurrence

Arctic grayling occurs in the tributaries of the Arctic Ocean in North America, Siberia and in Europe in the tributaries of Pechora and Korotaicha and the Kara Strait . The species is sensitive to water pollution, but is currently not considered to be threatened.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Maurice Kottelat , Jörg Freyhof : Handbook of European Freshwater Fishes . Publications Kottelat, Cornol 2007, ISBN 978-2-8399-0298-4 , pp. 401-430, 458-459 .
  2. ↑ a b c Arctic grayling on Fishbase.org (English)

Web links

Commons : Arctic grayling ( Thymallus arcticus )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files