Mrigal
Cirrhinus mrigala
Also known asMrigala · Naren
Water parameters
Minimum tank: 2000 L per individual at harvest size.
Feed and growth
- Feed protein
- 28% target
- Daily feed (warm)
- 1.80% of body weight
- Daily feed (cool)
- 0.60% of body weight
- Max density
- 40 g per litre
A 8000 g adult eats about 144.0 g of feed per day at optimum. 10 fish at adult size: ~1440 g daily.
Legality
Rules vary by jurisdiction and change over time. Verify with your local fisheries or wildlife authority before stocking.
| Jurisdiction | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| United States (federal) | check local regulations | verified 2026-05-13 |
| New South Wales | prohibited | verified 2026-05-13 |
Unlisted jurisdictions default to "check local regulations".
Origin and habitat
Cirrhinus mrigala (Hamilton, 1822), the mrigal, is one of the three major Indian carps, with catla and rohu. It is native to the rivers and floodplains of the Indo-Gangetic plain and on into Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, and Myanmar, and has been introduced to other parts of South Asia, Europe, and China. Records list the species under the name Cirrhinus cirrhosus, though most aquaculture literature and current databases use C. mrigala. It is a bottom feeder, taking decaying organic matter, algae, and detritus off the substrate; in the classic three-species Indian carp polyculture it works the bottom while catla feeds at the surface and rohu in the midwater. Adults reach about 1 metre and up to roughly 12.7 kg in the wild, though culture fish are harvested at half a kilo to two kilos in twelve to eighteen months. India and its neighbours produce major carps in the millions of tonnes a year, mrigal a substantial share. The flesh is white and soft but bony, and it is eaten widely across South Asia.
Climate and outdoor ponds
- Climate
- tropical (needs warm water year-round)
- USDA zones
- 9–13 (winter low around -7°C or warmer)
- Heating needed
- no
- Cooling needed
- no
Care notes
A warm-water bottom feeder grown mainly in South Asia, almost always within the three-species Indian carp polyculture. It is eurythermal, tolerating down to about 14°C and growing best in the warm 30–32°C range. In polyculture ponds it reaches roughly 600 to 700 grams in the first year and half a kilo to one and a half kilos over twelve to eighteen months, on a carp pellet of 25 to 32 percent protein or on natural pond food, with feed conversion around 1.5 to 2.5. Its role is to clean the bottom, eating detritus, settled feed, and benthic organisms, while catla takes the surface and rohu the midwater, so the three together use the whole pond. Stocking ratios vary, with mrigal generally making up about a fifth to two fifths of a three-species mix; in monoculture, stocking runs 10 to 20 g/L. Mrigal handle moderate water-quality swings but want better oxygen than common carp, above about 4 mg/L, and are otherwise hardy. Fingerlings are cheap and abundant from hatcheries across India and Bangladesh. The species is little farmed outside the subcontinent, partly because the soft, bony flesh does not suit Western boneless-fillet markets, but for South Asian aquaponics it fills the essential bottom niche and has strong domestic demand.