Rohu

Taxobox | name = Rohu


regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Actinopterygii
ordo = Cypriniformes
familia = Cyprinidae
genus = "Labeo"
species = "L. rohita"
binomial = "Labeo rohita"
binomial_authority = Hamilton, 1822

Rohu ("Labeo rohita") is a fish of the carp family Cyprinidae, found commonly in rivers and freshwater lakes in and around the South Asia and South-East Asia. It is a herbivore.It is treated as a delicacy on Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. In fact, the Kayastha community of Uttar Pradesh treats it as one of their most sacred foods:to be eaten on all auspicious occassions. In Hindi it is called Rehu.(Rawas is the Indian Salmon, which is quite different) It is called "rui" in Bengali, "rou" in Assamese and is popular in Thailand, Pakistan, Bangladesh,Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Assam, and the Konkan region of India. It is a non-oily/white fish.

The roe of rohu is also considered as a delicacy by Bengalis. It is deep fried and served hot as an appetizer as part of a Bengali meal. It is also stuffed inside pointed gourd to make "potoler dorma" which is a delicacy often prepared to satisfy the palate of the discerning guest. Rohu is also served deep fried in mustard oil, as "kalia" which is a rich gravy made of concoction of spices and deeply browned onions and "tok ", where the fish is cooked in a flavorful and tangy sauce made of tamarind and mustard. Rohu is also very popular in Northern India such as in the province of Punjab. It is a speciality of Lahori cuisine as in Lahori fried fish, prepared with batter and spices.

Biology

During the early stages of its lifecycle, it eats mainly zooplankton, but as it grows, it eats more and more phytoplankton, and as a juvenile or adult is a herbivorous column feeder, eating mainly phytoplankton and submerged vegetation. It has modified, thin hair-like gill rakers, suggesting that it feeds by sieving the water.

It is diurnal and generally solitary. It reaches sexual maturity between two and five years. In nature, it spawns in the marginal areas of flooded rivers. When cultured, it does not breed in lentic environments, so induced spawning becomes necessary.

References

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*FishBase species|genus=Labeo|species=rohita|year=2005|month=November