::: ::: :::   ::: Home / Local Specialty / Fishery | Fishery | Afforestation | Agricultural Products | Indigenous Mother Language Education | Fishery || Trout || Sweetfish || Gunther || Zacco platypus || Taiwanese Shovel Fish || Major Breeding Aquatics： Currently there are 6 breeding places for river fishes in this township. The major breeding aquatics include trout, sweetfish, gunther and white fish etc. Among them, salmon occupies the largest breeding area. The potential of aquatic breeding business development is profound. Trout Family Salmonidae Genus Oncorhynchus Specie mykiss Common Names Trout Purposes Food and appreciation Features and Characteristics With another name called Oncorhynchus Mykiss, tout likes to swim at the fast-flowing stream. Similar to the Taiwanese trout, it belongs toa kind of land-locked salmon. Its body is in shuttle shape, its back is greyish green and its belly is white. There are small black spots densely spread on the two sides, back, back fin, fatty fin and tail fin of its body. In the middle part of the young fish!|s body, there are 8 ~ 13 oval stainswhich will disappear as the fish grows up. The lower lip of matured male trout is a little bit longer than the upper lip, bending upward to form a hook. The general length of trout body is 60cm, and the largest one can be 120cm. Environment of Habitats Trout was originally found in North America, from Alaska all along to Mexico. Due to its large piece of juicy flesh, Japan, Mainland China and Taiwan imported the specie for breeding. Trout like to swim in cold water. At the young fish stage, trout eats water insects and crustaceans. But the matured trout is a greedy eater which likes to eat the insects fallen to water, crustaceans, small fish, and even small trouts of other species. Trout is always a delicious dish at meals. Picture Browsing Sweetfish Family Osmeridae Genus Plecoglossus Specie altivelis Common Names Fish Purposes Food Features and Characteristics Sweetfish is fond of swimming at rapid-flowing rivers, and its body looks like a shuttle. At its upper jaw, there is a front tooth hooking downward, which is mainly for eating the algae grown on the river rocks. Its back fin is situated at the central part of the body. There is a very small fatty fin grown close to its tail. The body of sweetfish presents a very beautiful olive green, and its belly is white. Behind the chest fins of the fresh sweetfish, there is a very beautiful yellow speckle. As the fish is frightened or dead, the yellow speckle will turn grey. The longest body of a sweetfish may reach 30cm. Environment of Habitats Sweetfish likes to swim in the clear, clean andcold rivers. It is bred in Mainland China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan. In the early days, the wild sweetfish of Taiwan were found in Jhuoshui River and the rivers at the northern Sanjhan River in Hualien. The sweetfish found in fresh water regions are the most famous. At every autumn-winter break, sweetfish swims along the river and lay eggs in the lowerstream. After the eggs are laid, sweetfish will die. The young fishes then swim to the river mouth for dwelling. They swim upward all through their various growing stages. The adult sweetfish eat the algae attached on the rocks. However, as the rivers are seriously polluted by the waste water of metropolitan and the waste water directly drained from factories, sweetfish once vanishedin Taiwan. Later on, people imported its fertilized eggs from Japan, allowing them to breed in rivers of Taiwan. Picture Browsing Gunther Family Cyprinidae Genus Zacco Specie pachycephalus Common Names Gunther, stream fish, wide-mouth fish Purposes Food and appreciation Features and Characteristics The leftand right sides of gunther are obviously flat. With a name of wide-mouth fish, gunther has a protruding and very wide jaw, even reaching the eye socket when opened. Its lower lip end raises upward and fits in the gap in the upper lip. Its tail fin is wide and very long. Silvery white scales areshining on the body of female and young gunthers. By the two sides of the matured male gunther, there are about 10 narrow and irregular lines in light blue. Yellow and light orange lines are found on the fins, presenting a gorgeous scene during the breeding season. The body of large gunther is about 20cm. Environment of Habitats Gunther is a kind of fish exclusively found in West Taiwan. No matter in wide river or narrow stream, deep pond or shallow running water, or even clean ditch,it can be the dwelling place of gunther. It likes to swim in broad and warm environment. Hence, the middle and lower streams are the best habitats of gunther. It eats tiny organisms drifting or moving in stream, whether they are plants or algae.In the evening, it even jumps out of the water and catches the flying insects in the air. Picture Browsing Zacco platypus Family Cyprinidae Genus Zacco Specie platypus Common Names Stream fish, red cat (male), broad fin Purposes Food and appreciation Features and Characteristics Seeing its shape and color, Zacco platypus looks like the twin brother of gunther, only that its size is smaller, and its mouth pointed and narrower. Its upper jaw is only a little bit longer than the lower. Matured male Zacco platypus has wider blue stripes,and clearer light red lines by the two sides of blue stripe. Obvious red sheens are found at the lower part of its head and the front part of its belly. The matured male fish of both Zacco platypusand gunther is called red cat, and the female andyoung fish of both of them is called red cat. The length of large Zacco platypus is 20cm. Environment of Habitats Zacco platypus can be found in Japan, Korea, eastern coast of Mainland China and riversin West Taiwan. Dwelling in cooler water, Zacco platypus is vigorous. It likes to swimin the middle and lower stream of wide river and pond. With the lifestyle and habit similar to gunther, Zacco platypus is smaller so that what it eats is also smaller. When the breeding season comes, a lot of male Zacco platypuses and gunthers arefound chasing the female. Picture Browsing Taiwanese Shovel Fish Family Cyprinidae Genus Varicorhinus Specie barbatulus Common Names White Fish, Varicorhinus barbatulus Purposes Food Features and Characteristics The appearance of Varicorhinus barbatulus looks like a rocket in comics. It has an arc-like jaw, and a bloated body which start to shrink from the back fin. The streamlined body can effectively bear the force of water current. Besdies, its strong and powerful tail enables it to swim swiftly. The tail seems to be designed for the fish to swim in different environments of rivers. Its upper jaw is active to bend tothe head. Its jaw is huge but cannot open widely. The lower jaw carries thick and hard white cutin that looks like a shovel; and it was thus calledshovel fish. The upper half of its eyed shine with red gleam. Its back reflects yellowish and greenish metallic gleams and its belly is silvery white. General Taiwanese shovel fish are 15 ~ 25cm long, but it can be as long as to 50cm. Environment of Habitats The fish is mainly distributed in half of the eastern Mainland China. It can alsobe found in the rivers of the whole island of Taiwan. Taiwanese shovel fish likes to swim in cool water, so the middle and upper streams are their habitats. At the waters with rapid current or the peaceful pond, it likes to swim in the bottom area. It especially likes to swim in steep river section. The algae attached on stones are its primaryfood. But sometimes it also eats the tiny insects in water. Picture Browsing