The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

Personally, I find it heartening that the EA are actually doing something about an invasive species, its about bloody time. They have a history of being slow to wake up to potential problems and by the time they get around to it its too late.

Quite how these fish were introduced with a carp stocking is debatable. Were the fish from another infected water? An infected fish farm? Or illegally stocked from France? But we are constantly told that fish are moved by birds so.....?

Anyway, clear 'em out and start again, then have a go at signal crayfish (too late and impossible to exterminate) and those otter things, I'm sure I heard one with a foreign accent - honest

Every time I go fishing I come across evasive fish.

That was a beaver with the 'foreign' accent!

The 'odd' fish - unwanted aliens - have apparently been working their way from China across Europe to the UK. I do wonder how they got over the
English Channel - or did they swim?

Top Mouthed Gudgeon also in a tributary of the Lea and similar plans to use rotenone to eradicate them....

Rotenone was used earlier this year to clear a lovely pool that my club used to lease. This pool wasn't large but it did hold a nice head of carp to 25lb+ perch, roach and gudgeon (ordinary. lovable ones). The pool was supposed to have some of the American top Mouth gudgeon in there too. Now, I have been a member of this particular club for around 7 or 8 years. I heard about the top mouth blighters when I first joined and was told in no uncertain terms that any I caught must be reported and destroyed; not returned to the water! In all those intervening years I have not heard of a single to mouth being caught. Yet, as stated, earlier this year when we lost the lease to the pool the EA stepped in. No netting, no attempt at saving the other fish populations just straight in with the rotenone All very sad.

A few weeks ago I thought I saw a picture in Angling Times under captures of the week or something like that with a guy holding a carp which looked mightily like an Asian carp.I dont know the exact name for them but its the one that the Americans are spending untold money researching and trying (not even scratching the surface )to eradicate. It would be truly worrying if this was true even if it was in a still water.
P.S.

I thought Barbel were an invasive species stocked into an untold number of water systems:Scared:

The Mog wrote:A few weeks ago I thought I saw a picture in Angling Times under captures of the week or something like that with a guy holding a carp which looked mightily like an Asian carp.I dont know the exact name for them but its the one that the Americans are spending untold money researching and trying (not even scratching the surface )to eradicate. It would be truly worrying if this was true even if it was in a still water.
P.S.

I thought Barbel were an invasive species stocked into an untold number of water systems:Scared:

big head carp is the name for them

The barbel is pretty much a native species. Unless you are going back to before the break up of the land masses I seem to recall reading that it was originally in the Danube river system but spread (due to the British Isles being part of the European mainland many thousands of years ago) into the Eastern river system. True, barbel have been introduced into other river systems in the country over the years. The biggest of those probably the introduction into the Severn in a program sponsored by Angling Times. They have also been introduced into many still waters. I believe the majority of anglers are rather unhappy about this. For one thing the barbel is most definitely a running water fish and for another I don't think they can successfully breed in still water. There may be the isolated exception to this rule?

The Wels catfish 'silurus glanis' is another introduced species. The main introduction being at Woburn Abbey in the 1800's (possibly 1864) or so I believe. However, try getting a license to stock wels nowadays. The EA don't seem to want to approve them...

I believe it was the Rhine where barbel originated - hence their presence in most English rivers and their tributaries running into the North Sea.

Grayling have also been introduced into many rivers, Itchen, Dorset Frome, Test, etc.

Francis Francis had some Wels in his fish farm in the Isleworth area in the 1800's, they were destined to "feed the masses". That never came about although we now eat 'cobbler' or Vietnamese catfish!