Alburnus hohenackeri, Kessler, 1877

Freyhof, JÖrg, Yoğurtçuoğlu, Baran, Jouladeh-Roudbar, Arash & Kaya, Cüneyt, 2025, Handbook of Freshwater Fishes of West Asia, De Gruyter : 319-320

Alburnus hohenackeri

Common name. Caucasian bleak.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species of Alburnus in Tigris and Caspian and Lake Urmia basins by: ○ anal origin below branched dorsal rays 4–5 / ○ 38–43+2–3 lateral line scales / ○ 11–16½ branched anal rays / ○ 16–25 gill rakers / ○ usually 8½ branched dorsal rays / ○ ventral keel well developed, entirely naked or naked part extends more than 50 % of distance between pelvic origin and anus / ○ body deep, depth 25–32 % SL, markedly laterally compressed / ○ flank silvery, without brown, grey or bluish pattern. Size up to 150 mm SL.

Distribution. Caspian basin from Kuma to Artek drainages. Widely introduced in reservoirs all over Iran.

Habitat. Slow to fast-flowing waters; prefers areas where currents are low. Common in middle and lower reaches of large rivers and their tributaries, reservoirs, and marshy streams; also in brackish water at river mouths, in estuaries and coastal lakes. Spawns in shallow water, 0.1–0.5 m deep.

Biology. Lives up to 3 years, spawns 1–2 times during life. Spawns April–July when temperatures rise above 18–23°C. Eggs sticky, laid on submerged plants, rarely on pebbles,

1.4 mm in diameter. Females lay 2–3 portions of eggs per season. Pelagic, often shoaling in upper layers of water. Feeds on plankton and other aquatic invertebrates.

Conservation status. LC.

Further reading. Berg 1949b (description; as A. charusini ); Kottelat & Freyhof 2007 (distribution, biology, diagnosis); Kaya et al. 2020a (distribution).

Yüksekova wetland in upper Greater Zab drainage, the habitat of endemic Alburnus kurui .

Alburnus kotschyi ; Ceyhan drainage, Türkiye; 100 mm SL. Alburnus kurui ; Yüksekova wetland, Türkiye; 69 mm SL.