Piggy
In the foothill sections of the watercourses of the Danube basin, Vistula, Cisy etc.. it belongs to the predominant species, and its share in the formation of fish stock is equal to that of chub. It is the running water that can basically be defined as the area of its occurrence. Therefore, the optimal environment for pigs is mountain streams, in which very fast stretches with slower deep quiet changes regularly. The bottom of these sections can be suitably hard, gravely, the oxygen balance is also good here. Mumps also feels good in lowland sections of rivers; he stays in bright parties – whether, that sometimes he has to look for a dish in the mussels. In autumn, it is more comfortable with calmer waters, and from swift sections, the studs move beyond the mainstream, to dead ends or deeper bays. She likes all types of dam reservoirs, where he lives – judging from her excellent condition – in true prosperity. This is probably where the answer to the question should be sought, why does not use the possibility of returning to the streams, to their original positions. He visits them only occasionally – during spawning; then it quickly returns to more luxurious conditions. After some time, her fry also come to the reservoirs.
The advantage of mumps is this, that he doesn't need hiding places, therefore, its mass occurrence can be reckoned with even in the monotonous (np. regulated) watercourses, as long as they are deep enough. Its varied food preferences can be considered an even greater advantage, including both animal, as well as plant ingredients. The grouping of pigs into numerous herds is possible thanks to this in a relatively limited living space, that it only needs to share part of its food with other species – aquatic insect larvae, while the plant ingredients remain exclusively for her. The specific shape of the hard snout allows it to be scraped off the rocks of green plants, which in her digestive tract are properly utilized. Young individuals are more demanding, when it comes to the proportion of animal components in the diet. In adults, plants can form an essential part of the food.
When it is possible, spawning takes place in the shallower ones, swift, gravel sections of the main watercourse. From reservoirs, it usually migrates to spawning into gravel tributaries. In watercourses with more intensive sediments at the bottom, its natural reproduction is uncertain. It spawns in warmer conditions at the end of April, usually later.
In terms of growth intensity, it does not differ from other comparable cyprinids, average size individuals have 8-10 lat. Specimens weighing approx 2 Kg. Under optimal natural conditions, in undisturbed watercourses, the ichthyomas of pigs can reach even more than 1000 kg / ha.
The positions of the mumps can be selected with certainty considering the information presented above. In shallow, transparent waters, pigs present their shiny bellies, when they scrape the lichen off the rocks, set obliquely. Pigs from all over the area gather at the outlets of the slaughterhouse outlets, the municipal sewage system and in these places, where edible substances enter the water.