The gloomy yet beautiful underwater world of the juvenile bleak. Yonne, France.

Welcome to the gloomy yet beautiful world of the juvenile Bleak Alburnus alburnus. Here, a forest of water lily stems makes its way up from the murky riverbed all the way to the surface, and the otherwise bright sunlight is reduced to a distant glow, as it seeps in through a roof of large, floating lily pads.

Bleaks and water lilies in the river Yonne, France.

Bleaks are small freshwater fish usually found in schools just below the surface of rivers or other slow-moving waters. The adults mainly prey on floating insects, whereas juveniles typically reside in the relative safety of the vegetation in the shallows, where they feed mostly on zooplankton.

I made these photos in Bourgogne, France, in the river Yonne, but you could find similar scenes in nearly any clean river, lake, canal, or perhaps even the local pond. All it takes really is a dive mask and a snorkel.

Here I am flopping about between the lily pads in the Yonne—to the amusement of passersby—trying, and most of the time failing, to hold my position in the current without scaring away all the fish (photo by Sabine).