Honmoroko (English name: Gnathopogon elongatus caerulescens)

Japanese: ホンモロコ(本鲃∥本諸子) - ホンモロコ（英語表記）Gnathopogon elongatus caerulescens

A freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae. Originally a specialty of the Lake Biwa-Yodo River water system, it has now been introduced and is now also breeding in Lake Suwa (Nagano Prefecture), Lake Yamanaka (Yamanashi Prefecture), Lake Okutama (Tokyo), and the Koto River (Yamaguchi Prefecture). In Lake Biwa, they mainly form schools and swim actively in the middle layer of the outer lake, and also have a habit of gathering around reefs. They feed on small animals, mainly zooplankton. The spawning season is from March to June, when they migrate to shallow areas and lay eggs on the stems of wild rice or on willow roots that have descended into the water. It is similar in shape to the Tamoroko G. e . elongatus , but its body is longer and thinner than that of the Tamoroko, its whiskers are shorter, and its snout tip is sharper.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

コイ目コイ科の淡水魚。元来は琵琶湖淀川水系の特産だが，移殖により現在では諏訪湖(長野県)，山中湖(山梨県)，奥多摩湖(東京都)，厚東川(山口県)などにも繁殖している。琵琶湖ではおもに群れをなして外湖の中層を活発に遊泳し，また岩礁などの周辺に集まる習性がある。餌は動物性プランクトンを主とした小動物。産卵期は3～6月で，浅所に来遊し，マコモの茎や水中に降下したヤナギの根などに産卵する。形はタモロコG.e.elongatusに似るが，タモロコよりも体が細長く，口ひげが短く，吻端（ふんたん）がとがっている。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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