Chernobyl catfish and mutant fish – human’s water friends

Nowadays the Chernobyl zone is a natural-technogenic reserve. Nowadays, people can observe how the nature behaves itself without the active intervention of the human. As a result, the flora and fauna of the region live according to their laws and rules, because there is no participation of the economic activities of the population.

In the area of the Chernobyl station one can find Chernobyl river Pripyat. It has got lowland location. The river banks are covered with a wide floodplain, marshy districts, sands and forests standing in water. The depth of the river is about 10 meters, the width is from 200 to 400 meters. The flow of the river is slow and its length is approximately 60 kilometres across the whole territory. In addition to the Chernobyl river, there are not many lakes, but it is typical for this area.

We want to pay your attention to the data, that, lately, the evident worsening of the fish fauna variety has been fixed in the Chernobyl region. Therefore, the decrease of both industrial and non-industrial fish has been noted. The research shows, that from 72 species, 22 catastrophically reduced the quantity. And biological reserves of 24 species, reduced in more than 10 times. Modern reserves, in better case, contain 5 percents from the level of 70 years of the 20^th century.

We should remind that before the disaster the fish infrastructure was well-developed in the Chernobyl region. Yearly, it provided from 2900 to 3000 tons of fish from fish farms and about 580 to 600 tons from total reservoirs.

After the accident, scientists carried out the research in order to examine the composition of the species of inhabitants. By its results, we can state that the fish fauna includes 20 fish species. The most common are next Chernobyl fish as: a perch, a bream, a roach, a rudd, a crucian, a pike perch, a pike and, of course, a well-known Chernobyl catfish.

Fishing in Chernobyl, to go or not to go? That is a question

The mouth of  Pripyat and its bays are the most popular places for fishing in Chernobyl. This is due to the fact that overgrown banks protect fish in Chernobyl from unwelcomed visitors. Therefore, fishermen have got a great opportunity of a good catch of Chernobyl fish.

There are some unusual places for fishing in Chernobyl. These are abandoned melioration systems. Fishing in these districts does not have a massive character. Only single fishermen chose this spots. But it is possible to catch such Chernobyl fish as a carp and a crucian there.

There is a place, where even the most brave and loyal fishermen do not want to fish. This is the cooling pond, because the Chernobyl cooling pond fish has got too high rates of radionuclides. So, they are called the radioactive fish of Chernobyl. Besides, closer places to the station are under more strict control. So, it is obvious, that the level of protection is higher. Thus, in general you can find fishermen only near the river.

Some fishermen have got season preferences for choosing fishing places. In spring most of them catch fish of Chernobyl in the fairway and the mouth of the river. It considers to be the best time for catching fish in Chernobyl. For example, they can catch a sarasper, a burbot and a pike perch. Besides, after winter sleep, a hungry Chernobyl catfish does not mind to eat a delicious bait, either.

In summer the bays are the most preferable spots, because it is possible to catch such rare Chernobyl fish as a sazan and a lin.

Autumn is the time of hunting with tackles for carnivore Chernobyl fish. For instances, a pike perch in the riverbed and a pike in the thickets of tiny bays. This time of the year, fishermen can catch a rather enormous trophy fish Chernobyl. Usually they weigh from 5 to 7 kilos.

Winter time is for catching fish of Chernobyl in the pits. The main aim is to catch such Chernobyl fish as a sazan. Fishermen choose places with depth from 5 to 6 meters and even more. Some do the ice fishing and look for such Chernobyl fish as a pike perch or a pike.

Fishing in Chernobyl is mainly given good comments:

1. The fish size and its amount is bigger than in Dnipro-river.
2. Efforts to catching fish are much less.
3. While cooking fish soup, it is impossible to find dirty smudges. The reason is the absence of oil and fuel, because the vessels do not go by Chernobyl river Pripyat.

As you see, there are a lot of advantages and disadvantages of fishing in Chernobyl. But only you decide and choose.

Mutant catfish or what is the reason of their huge size?

Chernobyl giant catfish live nearby the Chernobyl station. Some station employees say jokingly, that Chernobyl catfish are almost torpedoes. Mutant catfish in Chernobyl are just enormous samples. They weigh from 50 to 70 kilos. You will not believe, because it sounds paradoxically and shockingly, but radiation is not the source of their growth.

Here are the reasons of mutant catfish large size:

• Chernobyl catfish have got plenty of food, so they do not have to search it.
• There are no catches in industrial scales.
• The amount of natural predators has significantly decreased. As a result, fish of Chernobyl breed and grow very quickly. The decreasing amount of predators is for better, because exactly they most strongly accumulate the nucleotides in their bodies.

So, thankfully to these factors, river inhabitants just continue growing and growing in magnificent steps. Once again it proves, that the only, who can take right care of its inhabitants is the nature, which does not need any support of people. And this effect of natural growth can not be reached artificially in man-made fish farms, how well the people would not try to do their best, but everything is in vain.

The level of danger from radioactive fish Chernobyl depends on the rate of the pollution of the reservoirs. The highest pollution have got those, which are situated in the distance of 10 kilometres from the Chernobyl station. The most dangerous also consider to be the Chernobyl lake fish, because they live in closed lakes such as Hlubokoe, Azbuchin and Dalekoe. The degree of radionuclides in bodies of radioactive fish of Chernobyl consists from 10 to 20. . It multiply exceeds the acceptable level. And the most unsafe Chernobyl catfish live in the cooling pond The later data shows that the rate of radiation of radioactive fish of Chernobyl in Pripyat is above the norm in 3 to 10 times.

It is also important and necessary to know, that the accumulation of nucleotides by radioactive fish of Chernobyl depends not only on the natural habitat, but as well as on its size and food. Chernobyl catfish are not fussy eaters. They eat almost everything, including tiny Chernobyl fish. As a result, giant Chernobyl catfish have got so vast size.

Catfish in Chernobyl like eating bread

Catfish Chernobyl adore eating bread. Visitors easily allow themselves to feed catfish of Chernobyl with some loaves of bread at the bridge of bypass channel in the area of cooling pond. It is worth to note, that gross Chernobyl cat fish is a unique phenomenon, which you can admire only here in Ukraine in the Chernobyl zone. However, catfish at Chernobyl fall into winter sleep. So, if you want to feed them it is better to visit this place in spring or autumn. Approximately from the second half of March till the last days of October. When the November comes, Chernobyl wels catfish lies down to the bottom into the wintering holes.

But do not worry. Excursions in winter and autumn time will not leave you disappointed and indifferent, either. You will have a chance to watch the details of buildings more closely without leaves in the trees.

Rules of fishing for Chernobyl catfish or how to stay unharmed?

Usually visitors have got an unbelievable desire to get fish som, which is the main host of river habitants. Guests prefer going fishing on rubber motor boats. After several days of visiting Pripyat river, most of them expect to get a rich catch of Ukraine som fish. Pripyat considers to be Chernobyl fish paradise. This area attracts so many people thanks to its wealth of fish, especially richness of Ukrainian som fish.

The samples of which are usually from 1,5 to 2 meters long. On the other hand, local fishermen prefer fishing on the old wooden boats with one oar. And they go to the main places of Chernobyl catfish habitats. They also believe that fishing starts from raising the mood with the help of admiring the nature from water in the old boat. Som fish Ukraine love frogs, so catching fish with the help of frog baits considers to be the most spectacular. Fishermen look forward to appearance of som fish in Ukraine from water, but it always happens suddenly. The feelings at this moment are just incredible. So, be careful, attentive and alert.

There are some permitted places for having a rest and going fishing in the Chernobyl zone. Unfortunately, there is no accurate map of radiation zones. In real life radiation is distributed unequally across the territory. Therefore, parts with high rate of radiation can be neighbours with absolutely clean ones. As it was previously thought, the distribution of radiation depended on windrose.

Nevertheless, the recent research has shown, that the radiation was gravitated by gravitational forces. Radiation zones coincide with the anomality of gravity. According to this, going fishing for som fish follow safety rules. Make sure you stocked up enough drinking water and took dosimeter with yourself. It won’t be odd. As for caught Chernobyl fish, it will not be extra to test it at the dosimetry station, if you are going to take it to home. We are sure, you will agree with us, that it is better to prevent the reason of possible poisoning, than to treat the consequences.

Is it worth to eat giant catfish Chernobyl or better to let it go?

Imagine that your lifelong dream finally came true. You are fishing at the river bank of Pripyat. When, suddenly, tackles squeaked strained, because something heavy swallowed the bait. Your spinning curved, your nerves tensed in fighting with invisible opponent, which desperately fights for its life.

You pull it carefully in order not to let the capture leave. At last, after long competition, som fish Chernobyl do not give up easily, you manage to get it out. And here it is som fish in Chernobyl. Adrenaline covers you with head. You take Chernobyl fish pictures or make a phone call in order to boast before your friends. As a result, you are extremely pleased with your long-awaited trophy.

And what is further? It appears a great temptation to try som fish meat. But is it worth your life and health? And the wels catfish Chernobyl looks absolutely the same as others healthy and safe ones. But unfortunately it is impossible to determine visually the radiation level of wels catfish in Chernobyl. It is necessary to mark, that eating such fish can provoke poisoning and allergy. But if you are a risky person and decided to try Chernobyl catfish meat cut it into pieces and pour it with light vinegar solution. Let it stay so for several hours. Partly, it will reduce the amount of radionuclides.

Be especially careful while cooking fish soup. The first and the second soup water should be poured away. Only then you can try your fish soup. But the most perfect variant would be sports fishing for Chernobyl catfish. Just caught and then let it go. It would save your life and health.

Is it legal or illegal to go fishing in Chernobyl?

According to Ukrainian laws fishing in the territory is prohibited. And from 2007 was added new law concerning the prohibition of export of any items and living biological objects from the region. This list contains mushrooms, animals, fish and plants. The punishment can be both fines and imprisonment. So, before to plan your actions, think properly about consequences. As the fishing for Chernobyl diaries fish can finish sadly.

However, in the conditions of lack of clear environmental defence system there exists uncontrolled fishing. Therefore, Chernobyl catfish get into the nets of poachers. These days illegal fishing can be under the cover of sports fishing. Often economical reasons make local people go fishing and do the further sale. Thus, mutated catfish can occur at the stalls of the markets. And it is almost an unsolvable problem. Local people just need money and to get it with the help of selling fish is their only chance. What happens with the buyers of such fish still remains a mystery for us.

Legends about Chernobyl mutant fish are advertising fiction or the severe truth?

Legends about Chernobyl mutant fish have got the equal rights with the British legends about Loch Ness monster and they are not absolutely worse. These days, some people, say, that Chernobyl mutations fish are able to read minds at distance. It is believed, that such effects of Chernobyl mutations of fish were got thanks to often contact with the workers of the station. Frankly speaking, it hardly believes, but we do not know surely the potential forces of the nature.

Others say, that mutant fish Chernobyl can predict the results of football matches. Like the French squid did that, choosing one of the two oysters with the name of the team. And with high probability everything worked correctly. And in Ukraine it happens in such way: it is just enough to throw to mutant fish in Chernobyl two loaves of bread with the names of football teams “Shahter” and “Dynamo”. What loaf of bread monster catfish Chernobyl will swallow first, the same team will lose the game. There are even such gossips, that some Chernobyl mutated catfish helped the employees of the station to make handsome sums of money in such way. They made bets according to mutated catfish predictions.

Moreover, there are such rumors, that Chernobyl fish mutations demand from Belarus people potatoes for eating. But it is only the light sides of Chernobyl river monsters legends.

Dark sides exist, too. Godly devoted citizens say that Chernobyl river monsters are able to drag to the bottom careless and inattentive fishermen. Just imagine such a horrible picture. A man sits on the riverbank, peacefully admires the calm river flow. Harmless dragonfly sits on his fishing rod. He smiles slightly and BOOM!!!… It was the last smile in his life. No one heard his cries. His resistance was not long. And the fishermen became the capture of the fish. It is a scary story.

It is obvious, that after the disaster in the Chernobyl reservoirs people often meet river monsters Chernobyl.  At our site you can find a lot of videos, which prove the fact that river monsters in Chernobyl certainly exist. In the cooling pond of the station som fish river monsters swim freely and their sizes reach the bodies of people and even more. The treasure of Chernobyl was 2 meters long river monsters Chernobyl fish called Borka. It was a hand Chernobyl monster river. The presence of people and other species did not scare it at all. But it is believed that the destiny of this fish was rather sad. Someone caught it and left it die on the ground under the bridge for fun.

Later, people caught the same size catfish. It is allegedly, that these Chernobyl river monsters eat the corpses of the people. Mysterious Chernobyl catfish river monsters live near the cemetery. It is supposed, that the dead bodies were washed by the river, which flows nearby and river monsters in Chernobyl keep a diet, in the menu of which are only the corpses of the humans. It is not proved, but the fact, that river monsters Chernobyl fish are able to eat water birds and mammals is absolutely proved by many different videos. The reason of such changes in eating habits and tastes is explained by constantly growing weigh of fish and it demands more nutritional food than tiny river fish.

Here brings up the question, can Chernobyl catfish river monsters really eat an alive person? It is unknown. Probably, when the fish significantly outweighs its real size, it will become quite possible, that it will look at people like at a tasty capture, too. And river monsters in Chernobyl are not afraid of people, because they just do not know that men can be dangerous for them.

Summary

From the all high above said information, we can come to the next conclusion, that if the accident at the Chernobyl station did not happen, if the authorities did not take further measures to creating the exclusion territory in 30 kilometres and if the industrial fishing was not stopped, the nowadays wide agiotage for the most gigantic inhabitant of the Pripyat river, most likely would not exist. Just by the fact, that catfish at Chernobyl would not become Chernobyl river monsters by 50 to 70 kilos. Technogenic reasons and further consequences generated the sizes of the current individuals.

Besides, it is impossible to say definitely, that exactly and the only radiation became the reason of their immense growth. What we can state undoubtedly, is that the question referring to their giant sizes always will be disputable. One half of the humanity will insist on the fault of the disaster, others will explain this fact as a natural result. And what is more can be said, that the radiation made its contribution in anyway more or less, it does not matter and does not change the situation in the Chernobyl zone. These days it became familiar for people the word combination of two parts Chernobyl and mutant fish.

Thus, today we watch how the nature behaves after magnificent technogenic collapses of the humanity. Catfish in Chernobyl are peculiar symbol of life itself. It is the exponent how can develop not only the fauna of the river, but the wild life of the nature on the whole.

Therefore, we do not know everything. We have to learn and understand much more with the help of lessons, which are given by nature to us, perhaps, not in the best, but in rough and clear manner, that nature will defend its creatures in any way, maybe even painful for it and them.

So,  using the tours to the Chernobyl area, let’s study together and make the decisions and do the actions, which will save the whole humanity until it is not late for us to be friends and equal partners on the Earth.