| Name | Canary Kurper, also known as: Kanarie Kurper |
|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Chetia Flaviventris |
| Description | The Canary Kurper is olive brown and green in colour; sexually mature Canary males have a brightly coloured chest, normally bright yellow. They have a distinctive marking of orange or red egg spots in the anal fin. They have a relatively slender body, big head, round tail and don’t have spiky fins like the tilapia species. Juvenile and female Canary Kurper are dull and greenish grey in colour and a lot smaller than the males. When looking at the male Canary in the water, the yellow chest shining brightly is very noticable. This is a real trigger for bass. |
| Weight | The average size for these fish is about 300 grams. |
| Length | The males are much larger than the females and can grow to 20 cm in ideal conditions. The average size of male canaries that are sexually active is around 12 cm (5 inches). |
| Habitat | The Canary Kurper, like the Dwarf Kurper, is part of the cichlid family but only occurs in the areas surrounding the Limpopo system. Even though it is not widely distributed Canary Kurpers are very dominant in the water they occur in and very quickly take over if introduced to new waters. A very good example of this is Rust de Winter dam. These fish are mostly caught in the summer months in shallow warm water and at times, when they are feeding actively, can become a nuisance as they will take any bait offered almost immediately. |
| Fishing Strategy | When the Canary Kurper is feeding they will take any bait, such as artlure, dough type baits, spinner baits, but the favourite is still worms. The tackle to use when targetting these fish are to be as light as possible, the lighter the better. |
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