Stillwater Barbel Thrive.

anyone else see the wrong in there facts
cheers
jerry

1. If a species is not breeding naturally then it is not thriving.....existing is a better word

2. Sounds like a big advertisement/marketing ploy. Perhaps it would stand up if it were an independant researcher....not a supplier/fishery manager etc etc.
They aren't gonna say they don't do well are they....bad for business.

In fisheries mangement/science and when learning about rivers the river is split into zones, these zones are based on the fish. One of these zones is the BARBEL zone....why....because they belong in a river.

Originally Posted by ChrisD

1. If a species is not breeding naturally then it is not thriving.....existing is a better word 2. Sounds like a big advertisement/marketing ploy. Perhaps it would stand up if it were an independant researcher....not a supplier/fishery manager etc etc. They aren't gonna say they don't do well are they....bad for business. In fisheries mangement/science and when learning about rivers the river is split into zones, these zones are based on the fish. One of these zones is the BARBEL zone....why....because they belong in a river.

Spot on mate 100% agree. Just another fish for the match guys to catch lots of and fill up their keepnets which in itself is an insult to a great fish by doing so.

Ricky

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there own facts say it all

fact 1 barbel grow fast (surely excellarated growth is bad for the fishes health)

To grow well like this they require lots of nutritious food, lots of oxygen and good water quality. ( best found in its natural enviroment the river)

fact 2 Barbel will not naturally breed in a stillwater. (says it all how can the thrive if they cannot breed)

fact 3 Stillwater Barbel are popular with the punters (whats this got to do with anything other than greed)

and the rest of it ive never read such bollocks what has the rest of it got to do with barbel thriving.
feeding with tench and carp thats just surviving
all this report points to is a very poor excuse for barbel to be stocked into stillwaters for nothing other than the purpose of greed

cheers
jerry

Whilst not wishing to disagree with the thrust of this argument, I would tell you of my experiences with Barbel in still water.

I am a General Committee Member of The Verulam Angling Club; we own a section of the Upper River Lea in Hertfordshire, it is a narrow but fast flowing section that contained a number of Barbel which were thriving, breeding, growing and were generally in very good condition, we also owned a plot of land which came with the river when we purchased the freehold, the land was of no use for building as it was on the flood plain, so we decided to invest in our property and dig a lagoon by the side of the river, planning permission was sought and gained, we also gained permission from The EA to our plans, basically we planned a half to three quarter acre lake which would be joined to the river by a culvert, the intension was to produce habitat and security for juvenile fish and also to give ourselves some more swims (we are a business, and like any other, bums on seats would improve our productivity and give our members options for a days fishing).
The lake was dug and landscaped, we hoped for natural stocking from the river but we also introduced still water fish such as Carp and Tench.
This fishery has become a huge success, it is popular at all times of year (on this water we have to stick with the river season), it is now known as a good all round fishery, producing Dace to a pound and Roach to over 2 pounds (from both the river and the lagoon) , Tench and Carp grow to good sizes, as do the Chub, what has surprised us is that the Barbel have voted with their fins, being caught from both the lagoon and the river at all times of year, they have increased in both size and numbers, they breed quite happily on the fast shallows and also live quite happily in the lagoon where they seem to put on weight well.

I am not advocating stocking Barbel into still water but I have to say this fishery is a runaway success that is very popular with our members, so much so that we have applied for planning permission for two more lagoons on one of our other Lea fisheries and one on one of our Great Ouse fisheries all with the blessing of The EA.

We at The VAC learned many years ago, that if you get the habitat right, the long term outlook for a fishery is excellent, we spend a great deal of out disposable income on habitat improvement, and if you get it right the fish come along for free!

Unashamed advertising section!!
Go to Welcome to Verulam Angling Club for some of the best Barbel fishing in the UK.

Just out of interest zanderman is the lagoon therefore fed by the river ie an inlet and an outlet with no obstruction? Sounds like a nice water. Would you be interested in this scheme we have running at the moment.

Home - Eel friendly fisheries scheme

I worked briefly on a well known commercial a good few years ago ( quite famous) it had something like 13 lakes all linked via a pipe system. There were mainly match lakes with a few " more natural" pleasure lakes. The majority were basically muddy puddles, overstocked with carp, barbel and lots of silvers. So much so that aerators were required, so that knocks the " well oxygenated" theory on the head. In Summer, some of the waters had a thick oily scum due to the amount of feed going on, so much so it was virtually impossible to float fish correctly. A lot of fish on hot days looked ( to me) like they were struggling, a lot were damaged, a lot had argulus yet it was still deemed one of the premier coarse fisheries in the country.....not for me....i left as i just didnt agree with the way things were done.

Sounds like a cracking fishery Zanderman, but there's surely a difference between stocking barbel into 'muddy puddles' and the somewhat natural movement of your barbel into the lagoon from the river.

I'd guess it's a fairly safe assumption that the water quality in the lagoon is comparable to that of the river? Is there much exchange of water between the two?





PS- any chance of a guest ticket for your 2lb roach lagoon?

bay malton have a fishery which has stocked barbel and they seem ok i've caught them a few times whilst fishing for pond pigs in the river rest period.
not that i'm advocating them being stocked into stills,more research needed i think.

kev.

hi lads. dont like barbel or chub in stillwaters, never have never will...billy.?

Chris / Mr Elephant

The culvert that joins the river to the lake is about 3 ft wide and 4ft deep and just long enough for a small foot bridge and some shrubs, the fish can pass between the river and the lagoon with ease and do so regularly.

The fishery is members only, however we do allow guest tickets and I would be happy to arrange this if you wish, the fishery is close to Wheathampstead in Hertfordshire and we allow day fishing only.

Chris, I will forward your site to our fisheries team, they are always happy to look at new schemes however we currently do not allow Eels to be taken from our fisheries so I suspect we are already half way there.

Tight lines chaps.