Scardinius erythrophthalmus – the rudd

11. May 2020

The corona crisis has delayed the start of the pond fish/cold water season, but now we have at least a few native biotope fish in stock. The name “biotope fish” should not hide the fact that these are bred fish, which are intended for aquarium and garden pond keeping and must not be released into the wild under any circumstances!

The rudd is one of our most common so-called white fish – and one of the prettiest! The body colouring is silver, often with a nice touch of brass yellow, the fins are usually vermilion; the older the fish, the more intense the fin colouring. The rudd is the native fish with the highest proportion of vegetable food. This is why it is the only native fish species that is suitable for setting limits to the spread of filamentous algae and duckweed in garden ponds. But you should not expect miracles from it. 

Usually the rudd grows to a length of 15-20 cm, the maximum size is about 50 cm. As the species is temperature tolerant and can also tolerate water temperatures up to 26°C without damage, it is very suitable for keeping in aquaria. Of course you should not heat your aquarium, but you don’t have to be afraid if the thermometer shows more than 20°C in midsummer – for some cold water fish already a critical temperature range. In the aquarium you should give flake food on a vegetable basis as staple food, plus frozen and live food of all kinds.

Rudd are schooling fish and very peaceful. They reproduce as egg layers, the spawn is released into finely feathered plants. Rudds do not care for their brood. Outer sexual characteristics are largely absent, males of the same age are smaller and more delicate than the females.

For our customers: the animals have code 878503 on our stocklist. Please note, that we only supply the wholesale trade.

Text & photos: Frank Schäfer