Common Catfish - Silurus glanis In the republics of Central Asia, the catfish is found in the basin of the Aral Sea (Syr Darya with its tributaries). In Kyrgyzstan, it inhabits the Kara-Darya River from its confluence with the Syr Darya to the mouth of the Kurshab-Darya, in the Naryn River up to Uch-Kurgan, and in the Chu River from the city of Tokmak to the lower reaches, where in floodplains (uzyaki) and floodplain lakes it is one of the main commercial fish. Although within Kyrgyzstan, in
Snakehead - Channa (Ophiocephalus) argus A freshwater fish that reaches a length of about 110 cm and a weight of 9 kg. The snakehead has a long, almost entirely scaled body, a flattened head with a large mouth armed with numerous small, bristle-like teeth arranged in multiple rows. It has small eyes, a short snout, and a very long back part of the head, which houses a suprabranchial organ formed by the lamellar processes of the first gill arch and one of the skull bones. The mucous membrane of
Amur Goby - Rhinogobius brunneus = R. similis Like the Amur loach, this species was introduced into the water bodies of Kyrgyzstan along with Amur herbivorous fish. It quickly spread not only in the water bodies of the Chui Valley but also in the Issyk-Kul region and the Toktogul Reservoir. It reaches a length of 6 cm, with typical sizes being 4–5 cm. Males are larger than females and are more brightly colored, with a bright sheen on the first dorsal fin. There is a suction cup on the chest
Mississippi Gambusia - Gambusia affinis Small livebearing fish from America. Most gambusias are freshwater, although some can inhabit brackish or saltwater. Males differ from females by their smaller body size and long ventral fins. Gambusia was introduced to Kyrgyzstan to eradicate malaria mosquitoes, first in the water bodies of the southern regions of the country, and later in the Chui region. Gambusia quickly multiplied in the water bodies of the Chui Valley.
Balkhash Perch - Perca schrenki In the water bodies of Kyrgyzstan, representatives of this family were absent until the late 1950s, although the common river perch is native to the lower reaches of the Chu River (within Kazakhstan). In the 1960s, amateur fishermen introduced Balkhash perch into the water bodies of the Chui Valley. It is an endemic species of the Balkhash-Alakol water system. It differs from the common river perch — Perca fluviatilis — by its more elongated body, the absence of
Zander - Zander lucioperca - Lucioperca lucioperca The zander is a typical lake-river fish that can also live in brackish areas of the seas. Successfully acclimatized in our water bodies, this predator was introduced in the mid-20th century. Its acclimatization was particularly successful in Lake Issyk-Kul, where it found favorable conditions for reproduction and growth. However, the introduction of zander into Lake Issyk-Kul caused significant damage to the indigenous fish, many of which are
Turkestan sculpin - Cottus spinulosus The Turkestan sculpin, like the Turkestan loach, is another exotic species of our ichthyofauna. It has 7-8 rays in the first dorsal fin, VII 16-17 in the second, and 11-14 in the anal fin. There are 30-35 pores on the lateral line. The back and sides are covered with small spines. The back is grayish-brown with small dark spots, which are also present on the fins. It reaches 10 cm in length and weighs 18 g. Males are larger than females.
Turkestan Loach - Glyptosternum reticulatum This small fish, measuring 20–25 centimeters in length, is quite widely distributed in the channels of mountain rivers, particularly in their mountainous and foothill areas. The loach is not so easy to catch. With its flattened body and head, it skillfully hides under stones. It has 6 rays in the dorsal fin and 5 rays in the anal fin (II—III). There are 4 pairs of whiskers on the snout. The body is bare, and the head is flattened from top to bottom.
Nine-spined stickleback - Pungitius platygaster This fish is the smallest species of sticklebacks. It differs from the three-spined stickleback by having a greater number of spines and a completely bare body, not covered by bony plates. The body of the stickleback is brown-yellow, with numerous dark spots in males and transverse stripes in females, while the belly is whitish-yellowish. During spawning, males become completely black, almost velvety, and only the abdominal spines remain
Aral Loach - Cobitis aralensis This is a small fish measuring 6—8 cm, rarely reaching 12—13 cm. It is found in Central Asia in the water bodies of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya river basins. In Kyrgyzstan, the loach inhabits the water bodies of the Chui Valley, as well as in Naryn and Kara-Darya. The dorsal fin has II—III 6—7 rays, and the anal fin has II—III 5—6 rays. The body and head are strongly compressed from the sides and covered with very small scales. The eyes are covered with skin, and
Tibetan loach - Triplophysa (Noemacheilus) stoliczkai It has a bare body, with a fold of skin extending from the eye to the tip of the snout. A fleshy ridge behind the dorsal fin is absent. The usual length is 10–12 cm, with a maximum of up to 16 cm. The Tibetan loach is a typical inhabitant of high mountain rivers and lakes. Other species and subspecies are found in water bodies with a wide range of hydrological conditions, where they reach mass development.
Abbottina river (Amur loach, Chinese loach) - Abbottina rivularis A representative of the Chinese faunal complex. The Abbottina entered the water bodies of Kyrgyzstan, like many representatives of this fish complex, accidentally. In the early 1960s, this species was introduced to the pond farms of Chui region along with other fish and spread throughout all plain water bodies, penetrating into Lake Issyk-Kul. The mouth of the Abbottina is small, lower, and crescent-shaped, with one very short
Redfin - Scardinius erythrophtalmus One of the most beautiful fish found in the water bodies of Kyrgyzstan. It is widespread in the water bodies of the Chui Valley, in the Chu River from the city of Tokmak to its lower reaches, where the redfin ranks among the most numerous fish populations in the floodplain lakes and backwaters. The favorite habitats of the redfin are quiet or slow-flowing bays with soft, muddy bottoms overgrown with aquatic vegetation. It avoids areas of the river with fast
Ordinary Marinka - Schizothorax intermedia This representative of the unique mountain-Asian fauna inhabits both rivers and standing water bodies—lakes and reservoirs. Marinkas, being typical inhabitants of turbulent mountain streams, have an elongated torpedo-shaped body, which allows them to easily overcome strong currents and waterfalls when they ascend rivers in search of spawning grounds. Their bodies are covered with small but dense scales and slime, which ensures easy gliding in the
Issyk-Kul Chebak - Leuciscus schmidti The genus Leuciscus — the chubs — includes quite a few species and is widespread across the entire Eurasian continent. One of the species of this genus is the Issyk-Kul chebak, which is quite large, surpassed only by the chub and the bream. It is a schooling lake fish, a subspecies of the chub, distinguished by its bright orange pectoral, abdominal, and anal fins. It inhabits Lake Issyk-Kul, preferring coastal shallow waters up to 10-15 meters and stays
Eastern Bream - Abramis brama orientalis The bream is considered to have acclimatized in the territory of Kyrgyzstan as early as the beginning of the last century. Subsequently, it was brought from the ponds of the Chui Valley to Lake Issyk-Kul, where it, along with the tench, occupied suitable niches for life in the freshwater bays of the lake. It is widespread in the Aral Sea, Amu Darya, Syr Darya, Sary Su; in the Chui River — from the lower reaches to the Tashatkulskoe Reservoir, but is
Aspiolucius esocinus - The Asp The asp is considered a river inhabitant. It is endemic to Central Asia. A fairly large fish, reaching lengths of 60-70 cm and a body weight of up to 3-3.5 kg. It prefers riverbeds, occasionally found in lakes. It inhabits currents with murky water, and in reservoirs, it stays in the river mouth areas where the water is turbid. Its biology is poorly studied. It reaches sexual maturity at the age of 6-7 years when it attains a body length of 45-50 cm. Spawning
Lin Lin is a warm-loving, slow-growing, sedentary, typically bottom-dwelling fish. Its structure somewhat resembles that of a chub, but it can be easily distinguished from all carp species by its thick, clumsy body, very thick tail section, very small scales, and very small, bright red eyes. Additionally, lin has an odd number of pharyngeal teeth arranged in a single row, elongated into small hooks on the inside; its mouth is very small, fleshy, and even appears somewhat swollen, with one very
Golyanka - Phoxinus phoxinus In Kyrgyzstan, there are two subspecies of this small fish — the Issyk-Kul golyanka and the Chui golyanka. The Issyk-Kul golyanka is found only in the basin of Lake Issyk-Kul, while the Chui golyanka is found in the basin of the Chu River. Golyanka is very undemanding in terms of living conditions and nutrition, which makes it possible to keep it successfully in an aquarium.
Pike A widely distributed species, it lives in large and small rivers, lakes, reservoirs, and ponds, preferring clean and fresh, but not too cold water. The common pike is a small fish (usually no larger than 15 cm, rarely up to 22 cm in length) with an elongated, spindle-shaped body covered with large scales, absent on the belly between the pectoral fins and the interbranch gap, a somewhat flattened head with upward-facing eyes.
Silver Crucian Carp -- Carassius auratus gibelio This species has been artificially bred in the water bodies of Kyrgyzstan and southern Kazakhstan. For instance, in Lake Issyk-Kul, the silver crucian carp was introduced in 1963 in a quantity of several specimens along with carp fry from the Frunze pond economy, where it had arrived with carp stocking material in 1954 from the Almaty pond economy. In the lakes of Biilikol and Akkol (Talas River basin), the silver crucian carp was relocated in
Carp Cyprinus carpio In the dorsal fin III—IV, scales in the lateral line 35—39. In the republics of Central Asia and Kazakhstan, the carp is widespread in the basin of the Aral Sea, the Sary-Su River, Chu, and Issyk-Kul. It has been artificially bred in the Balkhash basin and the Talas River basin. According to F. A. Turdakova, from 1885 to 1890, carp from the Chu River was brought to ponds near Almaty, from where it entered Balkhash through the Ili River in 1913. In 1909, carp was brought by
Talas Naked Osman The coloration of the Talas naked osman is quite beautiful. It can be easily recognized by its small but well-defined dark brown spots located on its back, head, and fins. The scales, which are present only on the lateral line, stand out with a light stripe against the background of these spots. Spawning occurs during the day in shallow rapids, and the eggs are carried downstream by the current to deeper areas covered with pebbles and gravel. The eggs of the naked osman are
Tian Shan Scale-Scaled Osman - Diptychus gymnogaster This species is the most interesting of the six species of the Osman genus from the carp family found in the water bodies of Kyrgyzstan. The local population refers to it as mountain or river trout. This is incorrect because trout and osman belong not only to different genera but also to different families.
Pike This is one of the most well-known freshwater fish, the only species in its genus. The pike is found in Kyrgyzstan only in the Chu River, in its lower reaches. It should be noted that this gluttonous predator can reach a length of 2 meters and a weight of over 40 kg. The body of the pike is cylindrical, with a dorsal fin slightly moved back, a huge and long head, with a wide mouth and small sharp teeth. The pike's eyes are mobile, allowing it to see well both to the side and above.
Pelad The pelad was brought to Kyrgyzstan from Lake Sevan and released into the lakes Issyk-Kul and Son-Kul. In Son-Kul, it has successfully adapted. The fish measures 40–55 cm in length and weighs 2–3 kg. Its body is elongated and high. The coloration is dark and silvery. There are small black spots on the head and dorsal fin. The back is slightly humped. A distinctive feature of the salmon family is the presence of a fatty fin before the tail fin.
Ludoga Sig. Family: Salmonidae. Representatives of this family are widely distributed in the basins of rivers flowing into the Arctic Ocean. Similar to salmon, the sig family, being fish of northern origin, inhabit water bodies with clean, clear water and sandy-stony bottoms. These are generally cold-water bodies with a rich content of dissolved oxygen in the water. Among the sig fish, there are typically migratory and resident forms capable of living in closed lakes. In terms of feeding
Issyk-Kul Hegarkuni Trout. Salmon Family. There are 8-9 rays in the dorsal fin (III—V), 8-9 in the anal fin (III); there are 104-117 scales in the lateral line. In Issyk-Kul, it can reach a weight of 17 kg or more. Following the recommendation of Academician L. S. Berg, Hegarkuni trout was introduced to Issyk-Kul from Lake Sevan (Armenia) in the form of fertilized eggs in 1930 and 1936. The first batch consisted of 750,000 eggs, and after the larvae hatched, they were released into the Irdyk
Rainbow Trout. Family Salmonidae. There are 10-11 branched rays in the dorsal and anal fins. There are 135-147 scales in the lateral line. It has a fatty fin. The body is covered with small cycloid scales. The body color is silver, with many black spots above the lateral line, and the belly is light. Along the lateral line, there is a rainbow stripe, which is how the fish got its name. Young fish have 10-13 transverse black spots on their bodies, which disappear in two-year-old fish, and the
Amudarya Trout. Family Salmonidae. Scales in the lateral line 98—120, gill rakers 16—22. Length up to 50 cm. Minimum weight 0.7 – 1 kg, average up to 2 kg, over 2 kg is considered a trophy specimen. The maximum weight of caught trout reached 27 kg (during the Soviet era). Currently, catching such a fish is practically impossible. A trophy weighing between 3.5 – 5 kg is considered a significant success. A strong fish weighing 2 kilograms fights until the end, pulling the rod to a full 15 kg.
Siberian Sturgeon, family Acipenseridae. This species is found in all rivers of Siberia from the Ob basin to the Kolyma inclusive. Males reach sexual maturity at 11-13 years of age, while females do not reach it until at least 17-18 years. The fecundity is high. A female weighing 25 kg, caught in the Irtysh River, had 500,000 eggs. The growth rate of sturgeon varies in different rivers of Siberia. For example, in the Irtysh, two-year-olds measure 27.5 cm and weigh 60 g; by 12 years, they reach
The kingfisher is a small, beautiful bird, slightly smaller than a starling. Once you see it, you will never confuse it with any other bird. In Kyrgyzstan, kingfishers are especially common on the Sokuluk River at the point where it merges with the Ak-Suu River, downstream from the village of Belovodskoye. This small bird, with its bright, tropical plumage, immediately attracts attention. It looks like a precious gem. The upper side of its body is dark blue. There is an ochre stripe under the
