Skip to content 
The suckerfish gets its name from its downward-facing mouth. It feeds on anything that lies on the rocky bottom of a body of water. By clinging to rocks with its sucker, it can maintain its balance even in strong currents.
The Chinese sailfish is one of the rarest fish species surviving today. Poachers try to catch it and sell it for high prices to aquarium enthusiasts. But not every aquarium can accommodate an adult specimen.
What does it look like?
This extremely rare and endangered species of aquatic fauna is unfortunately not encountered on trophy tours of the Putorana Plateau. However, you can catch large numbers of noble salmon. Chukuchans originate from China and look like this:
· Because of the high, triangular fin on its back, this species is nicknamed "sailfish" by the Chinese. In young fish, all the fins are quite large. As they mature, the body elongates, this characteristic disappears, and the fins become speckled.
Young fish are 8-10 cm long. Their bodies are brown, but as they mature, their coloring changes, becoming dark gray.
Chinese sailfish have light-colored stripes running diagonally across their bodies. Large, mature fish develop a horizontal stripe running across their entire body.
· The maximum length of individuals can reach 90 cm, and the fish will weigh up to 40 kg.
Habitat
The Chinese suckerfish is a species that is rapidly disappearing. It is found in the Yangtze River and its basin. The fish are being killed by Chinese activities. Construction of hydraulic structures significantly pollutes water bodies, leading to the extinction of the species.
Large Chinese sailfish prefer to dwell in deep waters, while smaller ones tend to dwell in shallows. The former prefer fast currents, while their offspring, on the contrary, prefer still water. Today, the Chinese sailfish is listed as an endangered species.
How are they trying to preserve the population in China?
If placed in an aquarium, the fish will tolerate captivity well and can coexist with other inhabitants, despite being considered a predator. However, the tank must be large. Therefore, poaching organizations catch these already endangered fish and then sell them to countries across Europe and the rest of the world, including Russia.
To try to preserve these unique fish, many fish farms purchase specimens from China and raise them in large reservoirs. It's difficult to create the necessary conditions for breeding them in aquariums.
Chinese swallowtails reach sexual maturity after six years of age. Given suitable conditions in reservoirs, they are capable of reproducing successfully. In extreme cases, breeders establish specialized farms and obtain offspring through hormonal intervention.
Let's sum it up
If fish farming organizations continue to work to preserve the rare sucker fish, it may be able to thrive again in the coming decades. And not only in China, but possibly in Russia as well.
This fish is unique and cannot be driven to extinction. By eating sediment from bottom rocks, the Chinese sailfish is capable of cleaning ponds and aquariums. Therefore, its price on the black market is quite high.
