Cypriniforms in China By Yiming Gao

The systematics of cypriniforms Scientific classification Kingdom:Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class:Actinopterygii (unranked): Cypriniphysae Order:Cypriniformes

The description of cypriniforms Cypriniformes is an order of ray-finned fish, including the carps, minnows, loaches and relatives. This order contains 11-12 families, over 400 genera, and more than 4,250 species, with new species being described every few months or so, and new genera being recognized frequently.They are most diverse in southeastern Asia, and are entirely absent from Australia and South America.

How about the cypriniforms in china ? WOW,there are 10 subfamilies, including the Schizothoracinae(裂腹鱼),silver carp（鲢），carp， gobiobotia，leuciscus（雅罗鱼），gobioninae（鮈ju）， barbinae（鲅ba），rhodeinae（鳑鲏pangpi）， xenocypris（鲴gu） and the ten subfamilies, with a total of 132 genera, 532 species and subspecies!!

My task ☆introduce common cypriniforms in china names(English/Chinese),pictures and characteristics. And i will mainly focus on these kinds of cypriniforms: ☆1.Black carp ☆2.garss carp ☆3.silver carp ☆4.bighead carp ☆5.Schizothoracinae

Black carp 1.alias:mackerel, green grass, black grass, snails, black grass, grass, black mackerel, black mackerel, black mackerel, bronze.. 2.Sp. Mylopharyngodon piceus 3.The distribution area is the plain area south of the Yangtze river. 4.It is widely cultivated for food and Chinese medicine. The black carp can reach up to 1.8 m (5.9 ft) in length and 35 kg (77 lb) in weight.It generally feeds on snails and mussels. The average length is 60–120 cm (23.5–47 in). 5.In China, black carp are the most highly esteemed and expensive foodfish among the four domestic fishes, and partly because of its diet and limited food supply, is the most scarce and expensive in the marketplace.

characteristics The fish is not active and usually lives in the middle and lower part of the water. The food is mainly snails, clams. It also preys on shrimp and insect larvae. In the fry stage, the main food is zooplankton. The growth of young fish is rapid, the individual is larger, the largest individual of adult fish can reach 70 kilograms. More concentrated in the food rich river bend and along the river lake to feed the fat, in the deep water in the winter. Action is powerful, not easy to catch. The oxygen consumption situation is close to that of grass carp, and can survive within 0.5 ~ 40 water temperature range.

grass carp 1.alias:white amur 2.Sp. Ctenopharyngodon idellus 3. perches in the rivers and lakes in  plain, generally in the middle and lower reaches of the water. 4.This species occurs in lakes, ponds, pools, and backwaters of large rivers, preferring large, slow-flowing or standing water bodies with vegetation.In the wild, grass carp spawn in fast-moving rivers, and their eggs, which are slightly heavier than water, develop while drifting downstream, kept in suspension by turbulence. Adults of the species feed primarily on aquatic plants. They feed on higher aquatic plants and submerged terrestrial vegetation, but may also take detritus, insects, and other invertebrates.

silver carp 1.sp. Hypophthalmichthys molitrix 2.Distribution in China's major water systems. 3.The reason for importation was generally for use in aquaculture, but enhancement of wild fisheries and water quality control have also been intended on occasion 4. Silver carp is an upper-middle class fish. Spring, summer and fall, most of the time in the middle and upper reaches of the water to feed, winter to deep water . Asian carp is a typical filter-feeding fish. The special structure of the gills filters the plankton in the water. Main food: silver carp feed on plankton, for life in the larvae stage mainly eat zooplankton, up to 1.5 centimeters of above gradually turn to eat plankton, and like to eat grass carp waste and put chicken, cow dung.

Ecology and conservation The silver carp in its natural range migrates upstream for spawning; eggs and larvae then drift downstream, and young fish hatch in the floodplain zone. Larvae and small juveniles feed on zooplankton, switching to phytoplankton once a certain size is reached. The species is somewhat sensitive to low oxygen conditions. The species is currently classified as near threatened in it original range, as its habitat and reproductive behavior are impacted by construction of dams, pollution, and overfishing. Population declines appear to have been particularly significant in the Chinese parts of its range.

bighead carp 1.sp. Hypophthalmichthys nobilis 2.Their range extends from southern China north to the Amur River system, which forms the border between China and Russia. 3.The bighead carp has a large, scaleless head, a large mouth, and eyes located very low on the head. Adults usually have a mottled silver-gray coloration. It is a large fish; a typical length is 60 cm (2 ft), and maximum observed size of 146 cm (4 ft 9 in) and 40 kg (88 lb).

characteristics The bighead carp is an important species in aquaculture, having the fifth-highest production (7.5%) of all cultured freshwater fish worldwide. Its production grew from just 15,306 tonnes in 1950 to 3,059,555 tonnes in 2013, most of the growth being in China. Alao,as an invasive species Bighead fish is gentle, not loving to jump. Food: filter feeding, mainly eating rotifers, branchlets, copepods (such as Cyclops), and some phytoplankton (such as diatoms and cyanobacteria) and artificial forage. From fish fry to adult fish, zooplankton is a staple food, and the plankton is a typical plankton eater.

Schizothoracinae 1.sp. schizothoracids 2. Often lives in a torrent. Slow growth, late sexual maturity. Breed in April to may. China produces about 10 genera of 78 species and subspecies. 3.It is distributed only on the qinghai-tibet plateau and its surrounding areas. 4.Body extension, slightly lateral, abdominal circle. There is a sharp cutin edge in the front edge of the mandible, and a fissure is formed in the middle of the abdomen between the two scales, so it is called the split belly fish. Dorsal fins often have strong spines or weak spines, with serrated edges.

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