WILDLIFE OF WELCH RIVERS 22

Minnows can live in a wide range of rivers, including all rivers on Snowdonia, from fast flowing upland streams to slow flowing lowland rivers.These fishes are only about 10 cms long, and are thin with a deeply forked tail fin. A single minnow would be easy for kingfishers, dippers and carnivorous fish to catch so they live in large shoals, sometimes with other kinds of fishes, and can swim very fast. When a predator tries to catch one, it may be confused by all the sudden movements of the shoal. Even when one is caught, the others have a chance to get away. Minnows feed on minibeasts, including freshwater shrimps, plants and algae. Minnows lay lots of eggs which can stick on stones in shallow water. These hatch into small fry within 2 or 3 days.


Blood-worm (midge larva) Blood-worms can live in very polluted water or in slow flowing areas of clean rivers. They are found in large numbers in the muddy beds of polluted, slow-moving rivers. The worms are bright red because of the pigment in their blood which can store a lot of oxygen. Blood-worms are the larval stage of a midge (a very small fly). The tiny larvae hatch out from a string of eggs protected by jelly. They feed on decaying matter in the water. Many are eaten by young fish. After weeks or months, a larva changes into a pupa. It eventually swims to the water surface and turns into an adult midge. Most of the adults cannot feed so they mate and die within a few days. We see load in our rivers and there can be millions of midges in the evening around Snowdonia.
The Kingfisher is a beautiful bird that feeds along our rivers. It catches small fish by diving in. We can see them near our school at Conwy RSPB reserve and on the River Conwy. You can tell the male from the female by its black bill, while a female has an orange bill.