Some time ago, a fan showed off a strange fish with me, looking thin, white and a little transparent, asking me to guess what fish? I racked my brains and didn't think about it, the loach body is too thick to look like, the color is not right, think about it, think of silver fish, because I have eaten Chao Lake silver fish before. After a blind guess, I didn't expect to dip a little edge. After the anglers told the truth, it turned out to be a unique fish of the Yalu River, the scientific name is the Yalu River silverfish, they call it noodle fish, and now the number is small and more difficult to catch.
Some time ago, a majestic and exuberant TV drama was broadcast, that is, crossing the Yalu River and facing the Western powers headed by US imperialism, our volunteer soldiers were indomitable and defended the dignity of the country and the security of the territory with their iron bones. After watching it, combined with the information provided by the anglers, I began to study the Yalu River silver fish.
< h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" >1, the decline of noodle fish</h1>
Originally an inland river in China, the Yalu River is now a boundary river between China and North Korea, and the estuary is currently shared by both sides. The Yalu River originates in the southern foothills of Changbai Mountain in Jilin Province, and its upper reaches are formerly known as Jianchuangou, and the main stream flows through Jilin and Liaoning provinces, and flows into the West Korea Bay in the northern Yellow Sea near Donggang City, Dandong City, Liaoning Province. The Yalu River is 795 kilometers long, with a basin area of 61,900 square kilometers and an annual runoff of 32.76 billion cubic meters, with many tributaries such as the Hunjiang, Xuchuanjiang and Bald lujiang rivers.
The Yalu River is very rich in fish resources, with a total of more than 100 kinds of naturally distributed fish, including river fennel, river perch, pike perch and other 10 orders, 19 families and 58 genera, of which the alien species of river perch and pike perch have formed populations. There are 8 species of unique fish: Yalu River noodle fish, Yalu River swim whistling, middle catfish, spotted fin carp, leather striped sub-catfish, small dorsal catfish, Ishikawa gerra, Yalu River anise, and small-headed oak tiger.
The focus of this article is the Yalu River silverfish, commonly known as noodle fish, noodle fish, ice fish, glass fish and so on. It is a freshwater fish found in the brackish and freshwater water of East Asia, and is abundant in the mouth of the Yalu River in Dandong, Liaoning Province, where it spawns upstream. It is a fish that migrates between rivers and seas, and it is also a migratory fish endemic to Dandong in the past. The whole body is crystal clear, the growth rate is slow, the body is slender, the head is flat, the mouth is large, the teeth are large and sharp, boneless and skinless, scaleless or fine scales, the adult fish is 10 to 20 cm, and it belongs to predatory fish.
Dandong noodle fish used to be very rich in the Yalu River, it is said that in the past in the old society people had no food to eat, the river fishermen will catch this fish, cook it in a pot as rice, because this fish is silver white slender strips, cooked like a pot of noodles, so it got the name noodle fish.
Of course, there are many subdivisions of silverfish, Yalu River silverfish is just a branch, its siblings are: Taihu Lake silverfish, Dongting Lake silverfish, Poyang Lake silverfish, Chao lake silverfish, Liaoning silverfish. Liaoning silverfish has large silverfish, pointed silverfish, longfin silverfish, Qiao's shortnose silverfish and other species, Yalu River silverfish is one of the Liaoning silverfish migratory type. They are represented by the Taihu Lake silverfish, which were called the four famous fish of China along with the Songjiang sea bass, the Yellow River carp and the Yangtze River anchovy as early as the Ming Dynasty.
Yalu River noodle fish is tender and abnormal, fragrant and overflowing, good taste, high nutritional value, is a specialty of Dandong. In the 1950s and 1960s, the yalu river noodle fish produced up to 600 tons a year, and was once called "the least valuable fish species" by the locals. Because of its delicious taste, there are many people who catch it, and people are not aware of the protection of the environment, and now this fish is on the verge of extinction, and the annual output of the entire Yalu River silverfish is only 3 to 5 tons.
Of course, the price also increased rapidly, and most of the noodle fish on the market were land-covered striped fish imported from other places, also known as large silver fish, not the original Yalu River noodle fish, mostly artificially farmed. The real Yalu River noodle fish are sold one by one, so small fish up to 15-20 yuan / piece, the scarcity can be imagined! If it is not protected, it can only be found in museums.
< h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" >2, the reason for the disappearance of the Yalu River noodle fish</h1>
According to netizens, their side is now only new year and banquet can eat, yalu river also rarely trace this fish, fishermen are risking to go to North Korea to catch, the price is even more hundred yuan a pound is difficult to buy.
In fact, the disappearance of the Yalu River noodle fish is not for no reason, before the founding of the People's Republic of China, China's silver fish resources are relatively rich, is one of the main catch objects in the northern coast and downstream of the river system in China, and now China's natural silver fish resources decline is very serious. For example, in the yalu river estuary and its coast, the production of silverfish reached 2500 tons in 1952, and now there are only sporadic production and large interannual fluctuations.
Destruction of spawning grounds: Destruction of spawning grounds is the most important reason for the decline of noodle fish resources. The high fertility of noodle fish is an important survival competition countermeasure, and any factor that affects its reproductive success rate will have a profound impact on its population. The destruction of spawning grounds, such as lake reclamation and habitat swamping, directly leads to the reduction of their spawning scale, fertilized egg hatching rate and piglet survival rate, which greatly affects their reproductive success rate.
Water pollution: Noodle fish are very sensitive to environmental changes, and fish populations plummet or disappear in polluted water bodies. The discharge of industrial sewage has caused serious pollution of water bodies at the mouth of the Yalu River and the mouth of the Liao River, resulting in a sharp decline in silver fish resources.
The impact of water conservancy facilities: the annual runoff of the main stream of the Yalu River is 32.76 billion cubic meters, there are many tributaries, the water conservancy energy is abundant, and the development is relatively early, the Shuifeng Hydropower Station built in 1937, the Yunfeng Hydropower Station in 1959, the Taiping Bay Hydropower Station in 1982, the Tiger Whistle Hydropower Station in 1978 and so on. Artificial buildings such as flood control levees and storage gates block the communication and migration between small groups of noodle fish, posing a direct threat to the survival of species.
Reduction of food: After the 1970s, China's four major fish began large-scale artificial culture, especially silver carp, which mainly eat plankton and are the main food competitors of noodle fish. Therefore, the high-density stocking of silver carp increases the competitive pressure of noodle fish, affects the resource supply of noodle fish, and if you don't eat it, you have to starve to death.
Overfishing: Silver fish has high economic value and is rich in nutrients, and is a high-protein and low-fat healthy food, so it is in high demand and is an important economic source for fishermen along the coast. With the rapid increase in fishing vessels, all kinds of new fishing gear are widely used, and high-intensity fishing is carried out in a short period of time during the spawning and migratory period of noodle fish, which makes the number of broodstock spawning of noodle fish sharply reduced and causes violent fluctuations in populations.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" >3, the future of noodle fish</h1>
Because there are many types of silver fish, there are many noodle fish, and some places may be called noodle fish in general. However, the real noodle fish is large and has a long pointed head, with relatively homogeneous dorsal and fins. In recent years, the Yalu River has released artificially farmed species of large silver fish, which are very similar to noodle fish, but there is still a difference on closer inspection, the noodle fish is slender, and the large silver fish is short and thick. Therefore, the protection of the yalu river noodle fish is urgent.
As early as 2017, the Dandong Fishery Development Service Center has conducted resource surveys on silverfish in the middle and lower reaches of the Yalu River, conducted artificial breeding, seed breeding, wintering and cage culture technology research, and in recent years has also been actively artificially stocked. At the same time, we will strengthen the management of the existing natural silver fish production, rationally plan the fishing time, and take urgent measures to carry out the ban on fishing at the spawning and juvenile stages of the noodle fish, so as to slow down the decline of natural noodle fish resources. Protect the natural breeding of noodle fish, and actively cooperate with the policy of returning fields to lakes, restore communication between rivers and lakes, and lay the foundation for the conservation and sustainable use of noodle fish diversity.
Interested anglers can also try to catch noodle fish, but the real noodle fish are estimated to have no chance of catching, because they may have run to the waters of north Korea, of course, some places with good water quality can also see them. But it is still possible to catch that kind of big silver fish, the line group uses a small hook thin line, uses the table fishing method to catch floats, fly lead to fish for the upper layer of the water, the bait uses red worms or small individual earthworms, and the bait will use a fishy smell. Since noodle fish are social fish, it is easy to form a phenomenon of grabbing food, and the frequency of playing and catching mouths is the trick.