Distributed in the medium-sized lakes affiliated with the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. More suitable for hydrostatic life. It usually inhabits the middle and lower layers of open water areas where the substrate is silt and submerged plants grow. Juvenile fish mainly feed on cladocerans and crustaceans; adult fish feed on aquatic plants, mainly Vallisneria and Hydrilla verticillata, and also eat a small amount of zooplankton.

Food Habits

Fruit bream is a herbivorous fish, and its feeding ability and intensity are lower than those of grass carp. Fish fingerlings and adult fish mainly feed on aquatic vascular plants such as Vallisneria verticillata, Hydrilla verticillata, and Echinacea. They also like to eat terrestrial grass plants and vegetable leaves. They can also eat some lake bottom plant debris and a small amount of zooplankton. Therefore, their food habits range wider. Generally, feeding begins in April and lasts until November, with the largest amount of food being eaten from June to October.

Growth

The bream is a medium-sized fish that grows quickly, with the 1st to 2nd instar growing fastest. Under conditions with abundant aquatic plants, the weight of fish in the current year can generally reach 100-200 grams; the weight of second-year-old fish can reach 300-500 grams. After that, the growth rate gradually slows down, and the largest individual can reach 3-5 kilograms.

Reproduction

Generally, they reach sexual maturity at 2 to 3 years old, and the minimum age for sexual maturity is 2 years old. Generally, a sexually mature female weighs 450 grams; a male weighs 400 grams. The spawning period is from May to June, and eggs are mostly laid at night. The optimal water temperature for spawning is 20 to 29°C, and the water flow requirements are not strict. The eggs are slightly sticky (the adhesion is worse than the eggs of carp and crucian carp, weak in adhesion and easy to fall off), light yellow, and adhere to aquatic plants or other objects, so their spawning grounds are mostly in shallow water and grassy places.

Start to eat a lot in April, June to October is the fattening period, the feeding intensity is the highest, and stop eating in November in winter. The 2-year-old is reachable and mature. Between May and June, adult fish gather in flowing water places to breed; the spawning ground generally needs to have a certain amount of flowing water, dense aquatic plants, soft mud and sandy bottom, and a water depth of 1.0-1.5 meters. , water temperature 20-28℃. The number of eggs conceived is generally 37,000-103,000. Fertilized eggs can hatch in two days and nights when the water temperature is 25°C. Clusters overwinter in mud puddles in deep water.