Blackfish from Jiangxia

Blackfish from Jiangxia

　　Blackfish, also known as snakehead or caiyu, is a highly valuable freshwater carnivorous fish. It has few bones, tender flesh, a delicious taste, rich nutrition, and high medicinal value. Its body is slightly laterally compressed, with a pointed and flat head covered in irregular scales, a large mouth, a protruding lower jaw, a round tail, and an entirely black body with black stripes. It prefers to inhabit marshes, shallow waters in lakes with abundant aquatic plants and soft muddy bottoms, and is highly adaptable. Fish fry stocked in the same year can grow to around 500 grams, while two-year-old fish generally reach about 1000 grams, with a yield of 1000–2500 kilograms per mu. It can be cultivated artificially. Jiangxia District has a total of 950,000 mu of paddy fields suitable for aquaculture, with clear, unpolluted water.

A general term for black-colored fish, including the hogfish, bowfin, Alaska blackfish, and black sea bass. Other species also referred to as blackfish include the killer whale, California roach, blacktip shark, and certain Australian edible fish.