Ohrid trout (Salmo letnica)

Ohrid trout (Salmo letnica) – an endemic freshwater fish belonging to the trout family (Salmonidae).

The Ohrid trout is an endemic species in the Balkans and in Europe. It is the closest descendant of the species that lived in that area in the Tertiary period. It always lives in the waters of the Ohrid Lake. The Ohrid trout has a flat body, a small head and starry grey spots on the body. Its maximum length ranges from 25-60 cm and weighs up to 15.8 kg.

It spends the day in the water depths and in places far from the coast. It emerges on the water surface at night when it catches flies. Sometimes it comes to the shore in shallow waters, searching for food from underwater plants.

It spawns from March to May. By crossbreeding the brown trout and the Ohrid trout we get a mongrel. They have alternately distributed red circles and gray starry freckles throughout the body.