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In fact, many peaceful fish are not averse to eating their smaller relatives, especially as they grow and before the long winter approaches. Even without the sharp teeth of most predatory fish, vegetarians—those who by nature feed on grass and algae—eat their own kind.
Asp, on the other hand, feed even on large fish, despite lacking fangs. To crush live bait, the predator has growths and tubercles in its mouth that act as teeth, but it does have a few denticles in its pharynx. Otherwise, asp are not much different from their carp relatives.
What does the fish look like?
- This predator has an elongated body with dense, large scales. Its large mouth slopes upward. The gill slits are prominent due to their large size. The caudal fin is slightly forked, and the dorsal fins are steep and short. The fish's mouth is rounded by plump lips, as in most members of the carp genus.
- The asp's coloration varies. The back is darker, with a bluish-gray tint, and the belly is almost white. Its sides, however, have a silvery sheen with a slight blue tint.
- Asp can reach lengths exceeding 1 meter, weighing approximately 12 kg. However, such large fish are very rare. More common are half-meter-long predators weighing up to 3 kg.
It's worth noting that asp is considered a heat-loving fish, so catching it in the cold waters of Siberia is unlikely.
What does the asp eat?
This predator has some distinctive attacks. Not only can it stun small fish with a lash of its tail, but it can also leap out of the water, covering its prey with its weight.
The carp's diet includes a wide variety of small fish, ranging from common roach to predators like pike-perch. It's worth noting that asp feed not only on fish but also readily consume various insects, crustaceans, and larvae.
How to find asp in water bodies?
The main way to locate this fish is by visually observing the river. Asp are active, constantly making powerful splashes and sometimes jumping out of the water, signaling their presence to anglers and their prey. This is especially true during warmer months.
Predatory fish prefer moderate, slow currents, but catching trophy asp in stagnant lakes is unlikely. This carp species often gathers in small schools. Therefore, if you catch one, you have a chance of catching all the others.
Conclusion
As we've seen, the asp isn't a picky fish. The only thing this predator dislikes is cold or salty water. In other bodies of water, carp are quite at home, eating everything they come across. It's a shame that you won't be able to catch this magnificent predator on the Putorana Plateau trophy tours. However, you do have the opportunity to hunt taimen, brown trout, and char. and many other noble fish.
