Latin incubatio — aging, hatching, breeding.

The incubation period is the time of embryo development from the moment of fertilization of eggs to hatching of larvae. The duration of the incubation period is different and depends on the temperature: in autumn-spawning fish — 5-8 months, in spring-spawning fish - 3-6 days.

Under favorable incubation conditions, the duration of embryo development depends on temperature. With an increase in temperature, development accelerates, and unevenly. In different species of fish, due to the fact that their spawning temperatures do not coincide, the ratio of development rates at different temperatures is different. At low temperatures, cold-loving species that begin to spawn earlier develop faster, at higher temperatures, on the contrary, species that spawn later develop faster. For example, at temperatures below 15°With sturgeon develops faster than sturgeon, and at 18 ° C and above, sturgeon develops faster than sturgeon. Under unfavorable conditions (insufficient flow, overload of incubation devices), development slows down, hatching begins late and lasts longer. The difference in the duration of development at the same water temperature and different flow rates and loading can reach 1/3 of the incubation period.