Zander facts for kids
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The zander (Sander lucioperca), also called sander or pikeperch, is a type of ray-finned fish. It belongs to the family called Percidae. This family also includes other well-known fish like perch, ruffe, and darter.
Zanders live in both fresh water and slightly salty water (brackish habitats). You can find them in western Eurasia. They are a popular fish for sport fishing. People have also moved them to many places outside their natural home. The zander is the main species in its group, called Sander.
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Understanding Zander: Its Scientific Name
The zander was first officially named in 1758 by a famous scientist named Carolus Linnaeus. He called it Perca lucioperca. This name was given in his important book, Systema Naturae. He noted that it was found in "European lakes."
Later, another scientist named Lorenz Oken created a new group, or genus, called Sander. He decided that Perca lucioperca would be the main example for this new group. Zanders are related to other fish like the walleye and sauger found in North America.
What Does a Zander Look Like?
The zander is the biggest fish in the perch family. It usually has a long, strong body. It looks a bit like a Northern pike, which is why it's sometimes called a pikeperch.
Its upper body is green-brown. This color extends down its sides as dark vertical stripes. This pattern is similar to the European perch. The lower part of its body is a creamy-white color.
Their tail fin is dark. Their other fins, like the ones on their chest, belly, and bottom, are lighter, off-white. The fins on their back and tail have rows of black spots. These spots are clearest on the first fin on their back. Young zanders are silvery, but they get darker as they grow older.
Zanders have strong jaws with many sharp teeth. They have two long, pointy teeth at the front of each jaw. They also have large, round eyes. These eyes can look cloudy if the fish lives in very murky water. This helps them see in low light.
Like other perch family members, the zander has two separate fins on its back. The first back fin has 13 to 20 sharp spines. The second has 18 to 24 soft rays. The fin on their underside has 2 to 3 spines and 10 to 14 soft rays. Their tail fin is long and split in two.
Zanders can grow up to 100 centimeters (about 39 inches) long. However, they are more often found around 50 centimeters (about 20 inches). This fish can weigh up to 20 kilograms (about 44 pounds). But most catches are much smaller. The biggest zander ever caught by a sport fisher weighed 11.48 kilograms (about 25 pounds). Zanders usually grow to be 40 to 80 centimeters (16 to 31 inches) long. They can reach a maximum length of 120 centimeters (47 inches).
Where Do Zanders Live?
Zanders are found across a very wide area in Europe and Asia. They live in rivers and lakes that drain into the Caspian, Baltic, Black, Aral, North, and Aegean Seas. The northernmost place they live is in Finland.
They have also been brought to other places. These include Great Britain, southern Europe, and parts of continental Europe. They are also found in Turkey, North Africa, Siberia, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan.
In the United Kingdom, zanders were first brought in during 1878. They were put into lakes on the Woburn Abbey estate. Soon after, they were introduced into the Great Ouse Relief Channel. Some groups in the UK consider zanders to be one of the "dirty dozen" non-native species. This means they are likely to harm native wildlife in rivers.
Zanders have been very successful in these new places. This is because they are good at living in slow-moving, murky waters. These types of waters are common in many British lowland rivers. Zanders do well in water that isn't very clear. This is different from pike, which prefer clear water. However, zanders need plenty of oxygen. They will quickly disappear from areas with low oxygen.
Zanders were also put into Spiritwood Lake in North Dakota in 1989. They have lived there ever since. Scientists worry that if zanders get into the Great Lakes, they might compete with other popular fish. These include the closely related walleye and the yellow perch. They would compete for food and places to live. Because of this, the government in Ontario, Canada, is treating zander as a future invasive species.
Zander Habitat and Life
Where Zanders Live
Zanders live in fresh water, especially in large rivers and lakes that are rich in nutrients. They can also live in slightly salty water. They use coastal lakes and river mouths (estuaries). Zanders living in salty water will travel up rivers to spawn. They can go as far as 250 kilometers (155 miles) upstream. You can often see them in the canals of Amsterdam.
What Zanders Eat
Zanders are carnivores, meaning they eat meat. Adult zanders eat smaller fish that swim in groups. Studies around the Baltic Sea show they eat fish like European smelt, ruffe, European perch, vendace, and common roach. They also sometimes eat smaller zanders, which is called cannibalism. They have also been seen eating young sea trout and Atlantic salmon. In the UK, zanders do well in canals where boat traffic makes the water cloudy. Even though they prefer common roach, they also eat a lot of gudgeon fish.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
Zanders lay their eggs (spawn) over gravel in moving water. The male zander defends an area. In this area, he digs shallow dips in the sand or gravel. These dips are about 50 centimeters (20 inches) across and 5 to 10 centimeters (2 to 4 inches) deep. They also build nests among exposed plant roots. The eggs are laid onto these roots. The nests are usually 1 to 3 meters (3 to 10 feet) deep in cloudy water.
Spawning happens in pairs, at night and at dawn. When they are spawning, the female stays still above the male's nest. The male swims quickly around her, staying about 1 meter (3 feet) from the nest. Then the male turns sideways to the bottom. The pair swim around quickly, releasing their eggs and sperm. The female leaves after laying her eggs. The male stays at the nest and protects it. He fans the eggs with his fins. Each female lays all her eggs at once and only spawns once a year.
The baby zanders (larvae) are attracted to light. After they leave the nest, they eat tiny water animals called zooplankton. The usual spawning season is in April and May. But it can happen from late February to July, depending on the location. The most important thing is that the water temperature needs to reach 10 to 14 °C (50 to 57 °F) before spawning begins.
How Long Zanders Live
Zanders can live for up to 17 years. They are ready to reproduce when they are 3 to 10 years old, but usually around 4 years old.
Zander Predators
Other animals that eat zanders include other zanders, European eels, Northern pike, European perch, and the wels catfish. Even the Caspian seal has been known to eat them.
Zander and Humans
The zander is considered one of the most valuable food fish in Europe. People like it because its meat is light, firm, and tender. It also has few bones and a delicate taste. Zander is not usually raised on farms just for food. However, it adapts well, which makes zander fishing quite sustainable. In some areas, releasing young zanders is limited. This is because natural populations are already enough for the market. Adding too many zanders could harm the populations of the fish they eat.
Zander is especially good for making fish fillets. It can also be served whole, baked, smoked, or cooked. Some chefs even value zander more than salmon. Even the parts that are usually thrown away can be cooked into a clear soup called consommé.
In 2004, it was discovered that some restaurants in Minnesota, USA, were serving imported zander. They were selling it as the closely related North American walleye. Walleye is a very popular fish in that area. Zander and walleye taste almost the same. However, selling the European fish as "walleye" is against the law. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration investigated this.
In Ohio, many restaurants were caught using young zander fillets instead of Lake Erie yellow perch. There was a shortage of perch, and prices went very high. This caused suppliers and restaurants to use young zander for popular "pike perch fillets."
In Finland, there are laws about the minimum size of zander that can be eaten. This helps protect the fish population.
In July 2009, something unusual happened in Lake Maggiore, Switzerland. A zander bit people swimming in the lake. Two people had to go to the emergency room. The worst bite was about 10 centimeters (4 inches) long. The fish, which was 70 cm (28 inches) long and weighed 8 kg (18 pounds), was later caught by the local police. They cooked it and offered it to the tourists as an apology.
As the largest member of the perch family, zander is a popular fish for sport fishing in the United Kingdom. However, it is considered a non-native invasive species there. This means that any zander caught by anglers must be destroyed.
Farming Zander
More and more people want to eat zander. This has made fish farmers very interested in raising them. Today, there are good ways to breed and grow zander. Across Europe, more and more fish farms are producing zander. They raise them for stocking lakes or for people to eat. This is mainly done in special indoor systems that reuse water. The amount of zander produced this way is still small, but it is expected to grow. These farming systems are expensive to build and run. So, they are best for high-value fish like zander that people want to buy.
