Fish
Common Bream
Abramis brama · also called bronze bream
In a still lowland lake at dawn, a stream of tiny bubbles rises from the bottom where a shoal of common bream is rooting through the mud.
Overview
The common bream, Abramis brama, is a Least Concern carp relative of slow rivers, lakes, and brackish waters across northern and central Europe, east to western Asia. Its tall bronze body, shoaling habits, and bottom-grubbing make it one of the most abundant and characteristic fish of lowland waters.
A fish that stirs the bottom
By sucking up mud and sifting it for worms and snails, large shoals of bream can stir the bottom of a lake enough to cloud the water.
Status
Least Concern, widespread and abundant.
Common Bream: common questions
Why does the bream have such a deep body?
Its tall, flattened body suits a slow-moving shoaling fish that grubs over the bottom of slow rivers and lakes.
How does the bream feed?
It pushes its mouth out into a downward-pointing tube and sucks up worms, larvae, snails, and mussels from the bottom mud.
Why do bream send up bubbles?
As they feed, they stir the mud, sending streams of bubbles to the surface.
Where is the common bream found?
It lives in slow rivers, lakes, and brackish waters across northern and central Europe, east to western Asia.