CreatureData

Bitterling

Rhodeus amarus (Bloch, 1782)

Status not recordedbony fish

The bitterling (Rhodeus amarus) is a species in the family Cyprinidae, order Cypriniformes.

No freely licensed photo yet

Quick facts about the bitterling

Weight
Not recorded
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Young per litter or clutch
Not recorded
Conservation status
Not recorded
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the bitterling live?

Not recorded

Where has it been introduced?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the bitterling as introduced in 4 countries.

  1. Czechia
  2. Denmark
  3. Slovakia
  4. United Kingdom

Introduced means brought by people and now present; invasive means the country's checklist records an impact. A species can be native to one part of a country and introduced in another. Source: Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (CC BY 4.0).

Is the bitterling endangered?

No conservation assessment is recorded for this species in our sources. That is not the same as being safe: it has not been matched to an assessment.

How is the bitterling classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classTeleostei
  4. orderCypriniformes
  5. familyCyprinidae
  6. genusRhodeus
  7. SpeciesRhodeus amarus (Bloch, 1782)

Synonyms Cyprinus amarus, Rhodeus genitalis, Rhodeus lucinae, Rhodeus sericeus amarus

Other names and names in other languages (34)
  • European bitterlingEnglish
  • Hořavka hořkáCzech
  • ChwerwodWelsh
  • BlåfiskDanish
  • ΜουρμουρίτσαGreek
  • Bermejuela EuropeaSpanish
  • Euroopa mõrukasEstonian
  • katkerokalaFinnish
  • BouvièreFrench
  • Szivárványos ökleHungarian
  • RodeoItalian
  • ヨーロッパバラタナゴJapanese
  • 유럽납줄개Korean
  • kartuolėLithuanian
  • SpidiļķisLatvian
  • bittervoornDutch
  • Różanka europejskaPolish
  • BoarcăRomanian
  • ПузанкRussian
  • lopatka dúhováSlovak
  • pezdirkSlovenian
  • idhtakuAlbanian
  • GavčicaSerbian
  • acı balıkTurkish
  • гірчак європейськийUkrainian
  • hořavka duhováCzech
  • chwerwynWelsh
  • bitterlingDanish
  • Europæisk bitterlingDanish
  • Paprastoji kartuolėLithuanian
  • BlehnițăRomanian
  • BoarțăRomanian
  • Горчак европейскийRussian
  • европейский горчакRussian

Catalogue of Life

Relatives of the bitterling

Other species in the same genus Rhodeus.

Bitterling

Rhodeus sericeus

CyprinidaeNo free photo yet

CompareBitterling vs BitterlingBitterling vs Rose bitterlingBitterling vs Kyushu bitterlingBitterling vs Suigen bitterling

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

Is the bitterling an invasive species?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the bitterling as introduced in 4 countries: Czechia, Denmark, Slovakia and United Kingdom, but does not flag it as invasive in any of them.

What kind of animal is the bitterling?

The bitterling (Rhodeus amarus) belongs to the family Cyprinidae in the order Cypriniformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-13. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Bitterling (Rhodeus amarus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/rhodeus-amarus

MLA

“Bitterling (Rhodeus amarus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/rhodeus-amarus.

BibTeX
@misc{rhodeus_amarus_2026,
  title = {Bitterling (Rhodeus amarus)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/rhodeus-amarus},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-13}
}