dace

(Leuciscus leuciscus), European dace, a fish of the family Cyprinidae. The dace measures about 20 cm long and usually weighs up to 0.2 kg. It is distributed in bodies of water of Northern and Central Europe east of the Pyrenees and north of the Alps. In the USSR it is found in rivers flowing into the Caspian Sea, the Black Sea (but not in the Crimea, the northern Caucasus, or Transcaucasia), and the Azov, White, and Baltic seas. The rivers of Siberia have a subspecies, L. leuciscus baicalensis, which is somewhat larger and has commercial significance. The rivers of northern Kazakhstan have the subspecies L. leuciscus kirgisorum. The dace prefers small swift and clean rivers, but it is also found in lakes and somewhat salty waters. It keeps to the bottom. Spawning takes place from the end of March through May; the fish lays its eggs in sandy-silt gravel or submerged vegetation. The number of eggs totals about 17,000. The fish feeds on small invertebrates.