Minnow

The breeding project for minnows is entering a new round. The aquarists at SEA LIFE Munich have caught minnows in a tributary of Lake Starnberg.

The aim was to raise them until they are sexually mature. Now the time has finally come. Some of the adult animals have now been placed in quarantine in a breeding tank.

To find out which soil the minnows prefer to lay their eggs in, a small experiment is started here. Three bowls with different contents.

Big stones, small stones and finer pebbles - where do minnows lay their eggs? As soon as the aquarists know this, they can start breeding the animals.

The minnow is threatened with extinction. For this reason, SEA LIFE Munich breeds the animals and releases them as adults in the tributaries of Lake Starnberg.

So maybe at some point a natural population can be created again in Lake Starnberg.

• Minnows are also used to monitor the quality of drinking water, as they show changes in behavior when water is polluted.
• At spawning time, the males get a red underside of the abdomen.
• The minnow was "Fish of the Year" in Germany in 2016