Plate VII
Bream
Abramis brama
No minimum size — release fish you won't keep.
The bream is the sociable bottom-dweller of calm waters and the namesake leading fish of the bream zone. In the Franconian Saale it lives mainly in the deeper, slow-flowing sections of the lower river, in impoundments above weirs and in quiet, weed-rich bays and backwaters. In large shoals it roots through the soft bottom for food, staying deep by day and moving into shallower margins in the evening and at night.
How to identify it
It is recognised by its extremely deep, strongly flattened body, the strikingly long anal fin and a thick layer of slime on the large scales. The fins are uniformly grey to dark and never reddish.
Look-alikes
The closest lookalike is the silver bream: it has reddish pectoral and pelvic fins and large eyes, whereas the bream shows uniformly grey fins, small eyes and a markedly longer anal fin. The vimba is set apart by its protruding dark snout and a shorter anal fin.
Tip
For bream, steady groundbaiting on a single spot pays off, for example when feeder fishing, ideally early morning and at dusk; because of the many bones the catch works well as fishcakes or smoked.
This profile is provided without guarantee; biological details and especially closed season / minimum size must be checked against the current AVBayFiG and your permit before relying on them. Rules & closed seasons.