| Famiglia |
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Salmonidae
Species (popular name): Marmorata trout or Po Valley trout
(scientific name): Salmo (trutta) marmoratus (Cuvier 1817) | | |
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| Name in the main European languages |
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I: Trota marmorata |
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| Max. size |
Kg: 20
cm: 140 |
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| Period of reproduction |
| Winter – November, December |
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| Description |
| A large size fish, it has a tapering, long body. Its overall colouring is based on a typical "marble drawing", composed of irregular winding grey lines distributed on a yellowish-grey body. The name of this trout derives by its particular colouring. Only young specimens temporarily present red spots, like brown trout, which disappear during their lifetime. The marmorata trout has well-developed strong teeth, signs of its predatory nature. |
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| Biology |
| It is an autochthonous species, once common in streams rising in the Alps and flowing into the Adriatic Sea. This trout, today increasingly rare, has disappeared from a number of areas especially due to the frequent introduction of brown trout in its habitat. The interbreeding of the two different specimens of course makes the marmorata trout lose its genetic characteristics. A strong and resistant swimmer, it lives in fresh, clear and well-oxygenated waters with higher flow than the streams populated by the brown trout. Male trout reach their sexual maturity on their third year, females on their fourth year and produce 2,000-2,500 eggs per kg of live weight. Eggs, with a diameter of 4-6 mm, are considered very "big". Incubation, at a temperature of 10°C, lasts for 40 days. During their first years of life, feed consists of small aquatic invertebrates: insects and their grubs, crustaceans, worms and molluscs. As the trout grows older and bigger, it mainly feeds on fish. |
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| Fishing |
| Like the brown trout, also the marmorata trout is highly appreciated by sports fishers. |
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| Acquaculture |
| Like the brown trout, also the marmorata trout is highly appreciated by sports fishers. Trout breeding techniques are carried out using wild parents caught in natural environments, specifically selected to obtain young specimens for repopulation. This is the only way to protect the genetic integrity of this species of great faunal and ecological importance. In the "Libro rosso degli animali d'Italia", published by WWF in 1998, the marmorata trout is classified as a species in danger of extinction. |
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| Curiosity |
| The marmorata trout can reach incredibly big dimensions: years ago in the River Brenta they caught a specimen exceptionally weighing kg 21,750! |
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