The ide dwells in the waters of Central Europe and Siberia all the way to the Kolyma. It is a secondary commercial species of the Pskov-PeipsiLake. A layman can easily confuse ide with roach or chub. But it differs from roach by finer scales and greenish yellow iris; also, it is wider that chub, and has a shorter head, and maroon pelvic and anal fins. Young ides are more silvery than adults, and as they age their back grow darker, but the flanks and the belly remain silvery, and fins become brighter in color. Ides inhabit large plain rivers, lakes and reservoirs. It is specifically numerous in the rivers with flood lakes. Ide fry forage on zooplankton and algae; older fish feed on higher plants, mollusks, fallen insects, and sometimes small fish. Ide’s diet is diverse. It grows fairly fast and matures when 3-5 years old and 25 cm and longer. When spawning in spring, ides are extremely beautiful. Their bodies acquire metallic shine, the opercula and head appear golden, and the fin colors intensify. Ides are prolific, laying 39 to 114 thousand eggs. The eggs are laid on rocks and plants. The hatched larvae attach to plants with cement glands. The larvae possess positive phototaxis.
In the rivers of Europe, ides are not that numerous and therefore have no commercial value, yet it is an asset to sport fishing. In some fish farms they breed yellow-red ides known as orfe. Orfe have strong visual appeal and are often kept as a decorative species in bigger reservoirs like pools with fountains or big fish tanks.
/ * The photos at lake.peipsi.org are cross-posted from commons.wikimedia.org and are used for familiarization purposes only. No commercial use of the photos is allowed. For more information about to use the photos see the originals on commons.wikimedia.org. /
