Carp

The carp is a large, warmth-loving coarse fish that grubs through the soft bottom for food and likes to move in small groups. In the Franconian Saale it is found in the warmer, calm sections of the lower river, such as impoundments, bays, backwaters and areas behind groynes and weirs, often with water plants and overhanging branches. River carp are usually slimmer and more agile than their counterparts from lakes and ponds.

How to identify it

The most reliable feature is the four barbels in two pairs at the underslung, protrusible snout-like mouth, with the front pair shorter than the rear. Added to this are a long dorsal fin with a concave outer edge and a sturdy, often deep body.

Look-alikes

Crucian carp and Prussian carp look similar but have no barbels at all, so the rule of thumb is: barbels present means carp, no barbels means crucian or Prussian carp. Young carp can be told from the tench, which carries only a single very short pair of barbels.