Are rice field eels and loaches viviparous or oviparous, and do they belong to fish?

General News Jan 1, 1970By Sophie Bennett 0 views

In rural rice paddies, more and more farmers are trying to farm rice field eels and loaches, these two slippery animals. So do the two belong to fish? Are they viviparous or oviparous? According to Peng Zifa, a rice field eel farmer in Ningxiang, Hunan, fish swim with fins, breathe with gills throughout their lives, and are vertebrates that live in water throughout their lives. The rice field eel meets these conditions and belongs to fish. "Shanyu" is a common folk name; the loach is also called "qiuyu" and is known as the "ginseng of the water." It lives in lakes and ponds and is a fish with very high nutritional value. It differs from other fish no matter in appearance, body shape, or living habits, and is a special kind of fish. In addition, because both belong to fish, they are both oviparous animals. The rice field eel is a bottom-dwelling fish living in freshwater. It requires a relatively stable living environment and likes to inhabit places with dim light, small water temperature differences, and little human disturbance. It likes to live in soft, humus-rich shallow water and still-water mud, living about 30 cm from the ground surface. The eel likes to inhabit burrows, directly drilling holes without pushing soil outward. The burrow has two or even more openings, and there is another one specially used for reproduction called a breeding burrow, which is wider and more hidden. The burrowing behavior of the eel changes with temperature and water level, and the burrowing behavior of eels also differs by region and size. No matter which farming method is adopted, such as cage, courtyard, factory farming, and soil-based or soil-free farming, the farming water level should be shallow, and fish nests or planted aquatic plants should be set up. Experiments have found that although eels without nests eat a lot, they move a lot and consume more energy; the opposite is true with nests. Therefore, it is best to adopt a semi-shaded healthy farming method, so that the eels eat more and consume less, thereby rapidly gaining weight and improving farming efficiency. The eel likes to eat fresh live bait and does not eat food that is unpalatable or rotten and deteriorated. It likes most to eat small fish, small shrimp, aquatic insect larvae, and the like, followed by terrestrial insects and earthworms. If river mussels and snails are shelled, it also likes to eat them very much. The eel's feeding method is the relatively rare suction-feeding type among fish, rapidly striking and swallowing prey within an effective range. If a certain bait has been fed for a long time, it is also relatively difficult to change its feeding habits, so wild eels should be trained with bait in a short period. According to this characteristic, an artificial compound feed that can be fed for a long time, has low cost, and gives a high meat gain rate should be selected. Where conditions permit, lights can be set up above the pond to attract insects into the pond for the eels to eat. The loach, however, is a small bottom-dwelling fish. It lives in still or slow-flowing water with a mud bottom and has strong adaptability, and can live in environments very rich in humus. When the water lacks oxygen, it can perform intestinal respiration, and after the water body dries up, it can burrow into the mud and lie dormant. It feeds on various small animals. It spawns in batches, and the main breeding period is from May to June. The fertilized eggs adhere to aquatic plants and hatch. The largest individual can reach 300 mm in length. Its flesh is excellent and it is one of the exported aquatic products. The loach likes to inhabit the bottom layer of still water and is often found in lakes, ponds, ditches, and the surface layer of mud rich in plant debris at the bottom of paddy fields. It has strong adaptability to the environment. The living water temperature is 10-30°C, and the most suitable water temperature is 25-27°C, so it should belong to warm-water fish. When the water temperature rises to 30°C, the loach dives into the mud to aestivate. When the water temperature drops below 5°C in winter, it burrows into the mud to a depth of 20-30 cm to overwinter.

In rural rice paddies, more and more farmers are trying to raise rice field eels and loaches, two kinds of slippery animals. So, do they belong to fish? Are they viviparous or oviparous? According to Peng Zifa, a rice field eel farmer in Ningxiang, Hunan, fish swim with fins, breathe with gills throughout their lives, and are vertebrates that live in water all their lives. Rice field eels meet these conditions and belong to fish. "Shanyu" is a common folk name; loach is also called "qiuyu" and is known as "ginseng in the water." It lives in lakes and ponds and is a fish with high nutritional value. It is different from other fish in appearance, body shape, and living habits, and is a special kind of fish. In addition, both belong to fish, so both are oviparous animals.

The rice field eel is a bottom-dwelling fish that lives in freshwater. It requires a relatively stable living environment and likes to inhabit places with dim light, small water temperature differences, and little human disturbance. It likes to live in soft, shallow water and still-water mud rich in humus, dwelling about 30 cm below the ground surface. The eel likes to inhabit burrows, directly drilling holes without pushing soil outward. The burrow has two or even more openings, and there is another one specially used for reproduction called a breeding burrow, which is wider and more concealed. The burrowing behavior of the eel changes with temperature and water level, and eels in different regions and of different sizes also differ in burrowing behavior.

No matter which farming method is adopted, such as cage, courtyard, factory farming, and soil-based or soil-free farming, the water level should be shallow, and fish nests or aquatic plants should be set up. Experiments have found that although eels without nests eat a lot, they move a lot and consume much energy; the opposite is true with nests. Therefore, it is best to adopt semi-shaded healthy farming so that the eels eat more and consume less, thereby rapidly gaining weight and improving farming efficiency.

The eel likes to eat fresh live bait and does not eat food that is unpalatable or rotten and spoiled. It likes best to eat small fish, small shrimp, and larvae such as aquatic insects, followed by terrestrial insects and earthworms. If river mussels and snails are shelled, it also likes to eat them very much.

The eel's feeding method is the relatively rare sip-sucking type among fish, rapidly striking and swallowing prey within an effective range. If a certain bait has been fed for a long time, it is also relatively difficult to change its feeding habits, so wild eels should be trained to accept bait within a short period. Based on this characteristic, a artificial compound feed should be chosen that can be fed for a long time, has low cost, and gives a high meat gain rate. Where conditions permit, lights can be set up above the pond to attract insects into the pond for the eels to eat.

The loach, however, is a small bottom-dwelling fish. It lives in still or slow-flowing water bodies with muddy bottoms and has strong adaptability, and can live in environments very rich in humus. When the water lacks oxygen, it can perform intestinal respiration, and after the water body dries up, it can burrow into the mud and lie dormant. It feeds on various small animals. It spawns in batches, and the main breeding period is May to June. Fertilized eggs adhere to aquatic plants and hatch. The largest individual can reach 300 mm in length. Its flesh is excellent, and it is one of the exported aquatic products.

The loach likes to inhabit the bottom layer of still water and is often found in lakes, ponds, ditches, and the surface layer of mud rich in plant debris at the bottom of paddy fields. It has strong adaptability to the environment. The living water temperature is 10-30°C, and the most suitable water temperature is 25-27°C, so it should belong to warm-water fish. When the water temperature rises to 30°C, the loach burrows into the mud to aestivate. When the water temperature drops below 5°C in winter, it burrows into the mud to a depth of 20-30 cm to overwinter.

Are rice field eels and loaches viviparous or oviparous, and do they belong to fish?

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