“I’ll go catch the marinka, otherwise I’m tired of sitting at home with my wife, ” the fishermen of Central and Central Asia sometimes joke when they go fishing. A joke, but not quite so. The marinka fish, the photo of which is presented below, is one of the most popular in these places. How to fish with a beautiful female name, what marinka usually peck on and how to cook them correctly - this article will answer these and other questions.
Who is where lives
Who is she - marinka fish? What kind of fish, how does it look and where does it live? The nimble and agile marinka, although it belongs to carps, was nicknamed “trout sister” for its masterful disposition and behavior.
She lives in Central and Central Asia and Kazakhstan. In these places, it is also often called “Karabalyk”, which translates as black fish. Very rarely, it can be found in Ukraine and in the European part of Russia. Marinka lives in almost any environment, but is most often found in mountain rivers and lakes. It can also be found in springs among the cliffs, lowland rivers, on the rifts and in cold streams. In most parts of Asia, this fish fills all existing water bodies, is considered weedy and does not enjoy special love among professional fishers.
Marinka features
This nimble fish prefers clean, running water, so most often it can be seen on small rapids and waterfalls, it overcomes them with ease. Locals have found an original way to use the marinka for their own purposes. This omnivorous fish is used to clean wells - it quickly and with pleasure destroys all kinds of crustaceans, leeches and various vegetation. Also, fish are commonly used as food.
This is where its main feature lies. The fact that the fish is poisonous marinka. More precisely, not all fish are poisonous, but only gills, caviar and a black film lining the inner surface of the belly. In order not to poison, you need to carefully remove these parts before cooking. Despite the fact that the marinka fish is poisonous (photo below), its meat is very tasty, tender and quite fatty, so learning how to cook this fish properly is really worthwhile.
Appearance and structure
The marinka fish has an elongated, elongated body, covered with small dense scales, which becomes slightly larger near the caudal fin. The back of the fish is gray or gray-green, and towards the bottom the shade gradually darkens on the sides, turning into black. This is a classic option, however, in accordance with the habitats, the color of the marinka can vary. Quite often, for example, you can find a soft yellow or orange fish with a greenish head. Above the upper lip, the marinka has a short but noticeable mustache - there are two pairs of them, larger and smaller.
Most often, individuals are about 25-30 cm in size, but much larger specimens are also found. The largest can weigh several kilograms.
Kinds
In total there are 4 varieties of marinka fish, each of them differs not only in its habitat, but also in preferences in nutrition.
- Marinka ordinary. The sizes of this fish can reach 70–80 cm, and the weight can vary from 300 grams to several kilograms. The common marinka is very omnivorous - it can eat both algae and fry of its own species. This is the most common type of marinka, which is found almost throughout the territory of Central Asia.
- Pike marinka. In size and appearance, it practically does not differ from the previous species, however, it prefers to eat animal food - fry, crustaceans, water bugs and so on. It lives more often in the reservoirs of Turkmenistan.
- Balkhash marinka. From the name it is clear that it is found mainly in the slightly brackish waters of Balkhash, as well as in other reservoirs of Turkmenistan. Unlike previous species, the Balkhash marinka is not so large, its size rarely exceeds 35–40 cm. It has rather large scales, but its mouth and mustache, on the contrary, are relatively small. Since its main food is vegetation, its meat is not so tasty in comparison with its predatory counterparts.
- Ilyinskaya marinka. This species is the largest, some individuals can reach 1 meter in length. The weight of the largest individuals of the Ilya marinka can vary between 11-12 kg. Its distinguishing feature is a rather large, sloppy disproportionate head. This fish is extremely predatory and lives, for example, in the Ili River, as well as in the Kapchagai Reservoir. Due to its former popularity, the Ilya marinka is listed in the Red Book, the last catch of this fish was recorded in the late 70s of the last century. Today they try to breed it artificially.
Here is a marinka fish. Where is this freshwater beauty found and how can it be caught? Move on.
Where to catch a marinka
Since this fisherman often prefers a predatory way of feeding, she lives where she is most comfortable hunting.
In winter, it can be found in the estuarine sections of the rivers - the depth there is sufficient, and the current is not so fast. In fast mountain rivers at this time of the year, the marinka tends to go closer to the bottom, deep currents are not so strong. She loves to hide in the quiet backwaters of the lakes.
In the summer, the marinka goes to swift. There, amid a pile of stones in the lower reaches of the rivers, she awaits her prey. Also, the predator likes to sit in ravines, between shrubs and stones - also a great place for hunting.
To catch this cunning predator, the fisherman will have to observe the strictest silence and very carefully throw tackles.
Natural food
Marinka fish in nature is quite omnivorous, but still prefers animal food. Its usual food is small minnows and char, but still the main part of the diet is made up of worms, caddis flies, insects and water bugs. Also, the marinka will not disdain the “salad” of water grass, derit flakes and nitrite. With all the variety in nutrition, marinkas grow quite slowly - during the first year of life, fish grows to only 6–7 cm.
Tackle for marinka fish
To catch this fish, they most often use a fishing rod with a float, spinning with a reel and flow rings, a spinning rod or donka - it does not matter much.
But what exactly matters is the length of the rod. Since the marinka fish is very shy, careful and sees the person standing on the shore perfectly, you need to choose a fishing rod with a length of at least 7 meters.
The fishing line can be taken not too thick, about 0.4-0.5 mm, and a pair of hooks No. 5 should be hooked onto it, leaving at the same time long leads, up to 30 cm. You also need to choose the right sinker, its weight depends on the depth of the reservoir and the speed of the current. For control, you can use blue or red insulating tape, wrapping it around the fishing line. This will not frighten the fish, but, on the contrary, it will be of interest - because the marinka is used to eating butterflies that have fallen in the water.
