Common bream

2021-06-17T07:21:12Z

91.129.103.232: /* Fishing */ adding {{cn}} to a highly dubious "not generally caught for consumption", considering it is one of the main edible freshwater fishes in much of the Europe

{{Short description|Species of fish}}
{{Redirect|Abramis Brama|the band|Abramis Brama (band)}}
{{more citations needed|date=March 2014}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Common bream
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name=IUCN>{{Cite journal | author = Freyhof, J. | author2 = Kottelat, M. | name-list-style = amp | title = ''Abramis brama'' | journal = [[The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species]] | volume = 2008 | page = e.T135696A4184980 | publisher = [[IUCN]] | date = 2008 | url = http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/135696/0 | doi = 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T135696A4184980.en | access-date = 11 January 2018}}</ref>
| image = Carp bream1.jpg
| image_caption = Common bream (''Abramis brama'')
| genus = Abramis
| parent_authority = [[Georges Cuvier|Cuvier]], 1816
| species = brama
| display_parents = 3
| authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]])
| synonyms = *''Cyprinus brama'' Linnaeus, 1758
*''Abramis melaenus'' [[Louis Agassiz|Agassiz]], 1835
*''Abramis vetula'' [[Johann Jakob Heckel|Heckel]], 1836
*''Abramis media'' [[Carl Ludwig Koch|Koch]], 1840
*''Abramis argyreus'' [[Achille Valenciennes|Valenciennes]], 1844
*''Abramis microlepidotus'' Valenciennes, 1844
*''Abramis vulgaris'' Mauduyt, 1849
*''Abramis gehini'' [[Émile Blanchard|Blanchard]], 1866
}}

The '''common bream''', '''freshwater bream''', '''bream''', '''bronze bream''',<ref name=Giles/> or '''carp bream'''<ref>FishBase, [http://www.fishbase.org/comnames/CommonNamesList.php?ID=268&GenusName=Abramis&SpeciesName=brama&StockCode=282 Common names of ''Abramis brama'']. Retrieved 2010-11-13.</ref> (''Abramis brama''), is a [[Europe]]an species of [[freshwater fish]] in the family [[Cyprinidae]]. It is now considered to be the [[monotypic|only species]] in the genus ''Abramis''.

==Range and habitat==
The common bream's home range is Europe north of the [[Alps]] and [[Pyrenees]], as well as the [[Balkans]]. They are found as far as east as the [[Caspian Sea]], the [[Black Sea]], and the [[Aral Sea]]. The common bream lives in ponds, lakes, canals, and slow-flowing rivers.

==Description==
The bream is usually {{Convert|30|to|55|cm|abbr=on}} long, though some specimens of {{Convert|75|cm|abbr=on}} have been recorded; it usually weighs {{Convert|2|to|4|kg|abbr=on}}. Its maximum length is 90 cm (35.5 in),the recorded weight is around 9.1 kg (20 lb).

The common bream has a laterally flattened and high-backed body and a slightly undershot mouth. It is a silvery grey colour, though older fish can be bronze-coloured, especially in clear waters. The fins are greyish to black, but never reddish.

===Similar-looking fish===
[[File:Brasem Kolblei.JPG|200px|thumb|left| Silver bream above, common bream below]]
The common bream can easily be confused with the [[Blicca bjoerkna|silver or white bream]] (''Blicca bjoerkna''), in particular at the younger stages (see picture). The most reliable method of distinguishing these species is by counting the scales in a straight line downwards from the first ray of the [[dorsal fin]] to the [[lateral line]]. Silver bream have fewer than 10 rows of scales, while common bream have 11 or more. At the adult stage the reddish tint of the [[pectoral fin]] of the silver bream is diagnostic. Like other [[Cyprinidae]], common bream can easily [[Hybrid (biology)|hybridise]] with other species, and hybrids with [[Common Roach|roach]] (''Rutilus rutilus'') can be very difficult to distinguish from pure-bred bream.<ref name=Giles>Giles, Nick, ''Freshwater Fish of the British Isles: A Guide for Anglers and Naturalists'', Swan Hill Press, 1994, {{ISBN|1-85310-317-9}}, pp 140–144</ref>

===Habitat===
[[File:Abramis brama Prague Vltava 1.jpg|thumb|280px|Common bream on fish exhibition in Prague]]
The common bream generally lives in rivers (especially in the lower reaches) and in nutrient-rich lakes and ponds with muddy bottoms and plenty of [[algae]]. It can also be found in brackish sea waters.<ref name=IUCN />

===Feeding habits===
The common bream lives in schools near the bottom. At night common bream can feed close to the [[shore]] and in clear waters with sandy bottoms feeding pits can be seen during daytime. The fish's protractile mouth helps it dig for [[chironomid]] larvae, ''[[Tubifex]]'' worms, [[bivalve]]s, and [[gastropod]]s. The bream eats water plants and [[plankton]], as well.

In very turbid waters, common bream can occur in large numbers, which may result in a shortage of bottom-living prey such as chironomids. The bream are then forced to live by [[filter feeding]] with their gill rakers, ''[[Daphnia]]'' water fleas being the main prey. As the fish grows, the [[gill raker]]s become too far apart to catch small prey and the bream will not then grow bigger than {{Convert|40|cm|abbr=on}}.{{Citation needed|date = November 2010}} If a common bream is malnourished, it can develop a so-called "knife back", a sharp edge along its back.

===Spawning===
[[File:Bronze coloured Abramis brama.jpg|thumb|A mature bronze-coloured common bream from the Netherlands]]
The common bream [[spawn (biology)|spawn]]s from April to June, when water temperatures are around {{Convert|17|C|F|0}}. At this time, the males form [[territory (animal)|territories]] within which the females lay 100,000 to 300,000 eggs on water plants.{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}} The fry hatch after three to 12 days and attach themselves to water plants with special adhesive glands, until their [[yolk]] is used up.

Because of their slender shape, the young fish are often not recognised as bream, but they can be identified by their flat bodies and silvery colour. At this stage, the fish are still pelagic, but after a few months, they acquire their typical body shape and become bottom-dwellers. By three to four years old, the fish are sexually mature.

==Fishing==
{{manual|date=May 2017}}

The freshwater bream is not generally caught for consumption{{cn}}. Common Bream are popular with sport and match fishermen. However, bream are not as hard fighting as most other fish native to the UK, as due to their flat, disc-shaped profile they are relatively easy to bring to the bank.
Bream will eat most baits, especially:
* [[Sweetcorn]] - two or three grains hooked or [[Hair rig|hair-rigged]].
* [[Maggot|Maggots]]/[[Worm|worms]] - two or three straight on the hook.
* [[Boilies]] - the large mouths of Bream will devour most boilies

Bream can be caught in rivers or lakes, with generous use of [[groundbait]] to attract the shoals. They are not shy fish. Float fishing on the bottom is another technique used. Ledgering (using just a lead weight to hold the bait down) with a cage feeder full of bait, often works better on larger rivers and lakes.

The current (2017) record common bream is over 10 kg (22lbs), caught in 2012 [http://www.anglersmail.co.uk/british-record-fish-2/british-record-coarse-fish-list-8924].

==See also==
* [[Bream (disambiguation)]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons|Abramis brama }}
* {{FishBase | genus = Abramis | species = brama | month = August| year = 2011}}
*[https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=163666 ITIS 163666]

{{Hatnote|This article includes material translated from the French and German Wikipedias.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q144534}}

[[Category:Abramis]]
[[Category:Freshwater fish of Europe]]
[[Category:Fish of Europe]]
[[Category:Fish of the Caspian Sea]]
[[Category:Fish described in 1758]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]

Wikipedia - User contributions [en]

Common bream