Fishing Reports

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Species of Fish

UK  COARSE  (FRESHWATER)  FISH
Bream	Roach	Tench	Barbel
Carp	Chub	Crucian Carp	dace
Perch	Rudd	Pike	Zander
Eel

If you would like to do a write up about a fish or two please do and send it to

 jim@fish-uk.com

Common name:  Bream
Latin name:  Abramis Brama
Family:  Cyprinidae

Description and habitat of Bream:
Adults are deep bodied and bronze in colour with darker, sometimes black fins. The bream has a deep laterally compressed body with a prominent covering of protective slime. It has a long anal fin compared with the dorsal fin, a forked tail and a relatively small head and mouth with a protruding upper jaw. Young bream up to approximately 8oz.are known as 'skimmers' and are more silvery in colour but turn a darker bronze colour as they mature. Often small bream are mistaken for the Silver bream (Abramis bjoerkna). The Silver bream is smaller than the common, or bronze bream, and is silver in colour with red anal and pectoral fins. An average Common bream will be 12 - 14inches. Bream grow to 19+lb and a fish over 4lb considered a good fish. Well liked by match anglers because bream are a shoal fish and therefore a good chance of catching more. Large bream are nicknamed 'slabs' or 'dustbin lids'. Found in lakes, ponds, rivers and canals but more often found in still waters. During spawning from May to June, the male bream develops white tubercles covering the head and upper body. Bream often interbreed with other species, creating hybrids such as the roach-bream hybrid. Bream are predominantly bottom feeders, travelling in shoals, rooting around and feeding in the soft bottom of ponds, lakes and the lower reaches of rivers. They feed extensively on algae, plankton, insect larvae, pea mussels, crustaceans and molluscs, also grubbing around among the bottom debris for the many micro-organisms which live there. Once feeding, the shoal of bream move across the bottom denuding the bottom of food. If the shoal is large and feeding in earnest it will stir up a great deal of mud and the gases released will carry the colour to the surface and discolour the water. For locating bream this is worth noting. Early morning or dusk are good times to fish as the bream move in closer to the margins as the sunlight fades.

Baits for catching Bream:
Worms, lobworms, small red worm, brandlings, bloodworm, bread (either punch, flake or paste), casters, maggots, gozzers, pinkies and sweetcorn.

Fishing Methods for catching Bream:
Various methods including float, ledger or feeder but the feeder is considered the best method. Bream can be voracious feeders mainly feeding on the bottom. They respond well to groundbaiting so if you can, pre-bait the area you are going to fish. Lay a bed of groundbait using brown crumb or continental groundbait with sweetcorn, casters, chopped up worms and some of your hook bait mixed in. Don't start balling it in when you start catching bream, this can scare them off. (it would you if someone started hitting you on the head with balls of groundbait). Large catches have resulted from laying down a carpet of groundbait which holds the shoal in the area.
Once a fish is hooked it needs to be pulled away from the shoal quickly otherwise the shoal will be spooked and will move on. As a guide a 4 lb main line with 2.5 lb hook length and size 16 hook is adequate. Accurate casting is essential to keep all your bait going into the same area. Laying on (fishing overdepth - i.e. in 6 foot of water set your float 8 foot from the hook) is a good tactic when fishing for bream. When feeder fishing use an open-end feeder filled with a groundbait mix with some of your hook bait mixed in and a hook length of 18 - 24 inches. When you cast in and the feeder has reached the bottom, wind up the slack in the line then wind in a bit more till there is a sleight bend on your rod tip. Bream bites are noticeable when float fishing by the slow disappearance of the float or when ledger / feeder fishing by the steady pull round of your rod tip. Bream are not known as a fighting fish and generally after a few 'nods' (tugs on the line as you reel in) come to the net with little resistance.

Silver Bream (Abramis bjoerkna):
Family: Cyprinidae
Description: Similar to a young common bream and difficult to tell apart being fairly deep bodied and silvery coloured. Not as widespread either but found in lakes, ponds, rivers, canals and still waters. Silver Bream are shoaling fish. An average fish will be 8 - 10ins. Grows to approximately 1lb and a fish over 10oz considered a good fish.

Common name:  Roach
Latin name:  Rutilus Rutilus
Family:  Cyprinidae

Description and habitat of Roach:
A moderately deep bodied fish with silvery white sides, dark brown or grey back with a bluish or greenish tint, red/orange eyes, large silvery scales and red lower fins, hence the nickname, 'Redfin'.. An average fish will be 6 - 8ins. Grows to 4+lb and a fish over 2lb is considered a good fish and a 3lb fish considered a fish of a lifetime! Found just about everywhere. Lakes, ponds, rivers and canals.

Baits for catching Roach:
Hempseed, Tares, bread (either punch, flake or paste), castors, maggots, pinkies, stewed wheat, cheese, small red worm, brandlings and bloodworm.

Fishing Methods for catching Roach:
Various methods including float, ledger or feeder but the float seems best. Light tackle is the order of the day with small hooks. Roach love casters and many a match has been won with this bait but ... roach have a crafty habit of stealing casters and leaving you with an empty half shell. Bury the hook totally inside the caster; you will still be left with an empty half shell a few times but stand more chance burying the hook than hooking it through the end of the caster. Another way I have tried and found works, with maggots as well, is to hook the caster through the middle. Darker casters are more buoyant in the water, so choose the darker caster to balance out the weight of the hook. This makes the hooked caster fall through the water at the same rate as your loose feed. Heavy or pre-baiting with groundbait is unnecessary. It is best to feed groundbait sparingly and use a fine groundbait to cause a 'cloud' in the water. Add a few hook bait samples to the groundbait and adding crushed hempseed seems to attract roach. Roach bites are very fast so you have to be ready to strike. Bread flake about the size of a thumbnail squeezed onto a size 16 or 14 hook often tempts the larger roach. Don’t squeeze the flake onto the hook too hard because you want little bits to flake off to tempt the fish and if you retrieve your float and the bread is still on the hook you’ve squeezed it on to tightly!

Common name:  Tench
Latin name:  Tinca Tinca
Family:  Cyprinidae

Description and habitat of Tench:
Tench are easily identified by their thick set, well rounded, dark olive green coloured body. The scales are very tiny which give them the appearance of being scale-less. The fins are rounded and the caudal fin is large almost unforked. The sexes can be distinguish by the shape of the pelvic fins on the underside of the body. Male tench have very large round shaped fins and those of the female are more triangular in shape and longer. An average fish will be 12 - 16ins. Grows to 15+lb and a fish over 5lb considered a good fish. There are also golden, yellow and orange tench but these are mainly found in ornamental ponds. The tench used to be called the 'doctor fish' because other fish would deliberately rub against them and be cured of their ailments with the slime from the tench which was thought to have healing properties. Found in lakes, ponds, slow running rivers and canals but more often found in still waters.

Baits for catching Tench:
Worms, lob worms, redworms sweetcorn, bread (either punch, flake or paste), maggots (Red seems best), pinkies, casters, mini-boilies, pellets, prawns and cockles, fresh not frozen or pickled in vinegar).

Fishing Methods for catching Tench:
The best time to catch tench is early dawn or at dusk and through the night. Tench feed almost exclusively on the bottom and like to root about in the mud and weeds. You can spot tench feeding by the stream of tiny bubbles that can be seen on the waters surface. They respond well to groundbaiting so if you can, pre-bait the area you are going to fish. Lay a bed of groundbait using brown crumb or continental groundbait with sweetcorn, casters and chopped up worms and some of your hook bait mixed in. Float fishing with a waggler, slightly over depth close to the reeds is a good tactic. Tench bites are usually a couple of knocks or small lifts on the float then it slides away slowly under the water. Don't strike too soon, wait for the bite to develop properly. Wait for the float to disappear completely before striking. Tench are hard-fighting fish and strong tackle is advised.

Common name:  Barbel
Latin name:  Barbus barbus
Family:  Cyprinidae

Description and habitat of Barbel:
The barbel is light brown to greenish brown with yellowish sides. The barbel's fins are darker except for the pectoral, pelvic and anal fins which are yellowish orange. The body of the barbel is elongated with very small scales and appears scale less. There are 55 to 65 scales in the lateral line of a barbels body. The head of the barbel is pointed and its eyes which are rather small are set high on the sides of the head. The barbel is recognised by its under slung mouth with thick lips with two short barbules on the top lip and two longer barbules at the corner of its mouth. These barbules have taste and touch cells and help the fish to locate food on the riverbed. Barbel spawn in late spring between May and July and when the eggs are fertilized by the males they take around 10 to15 days to hatch. The small hatchling barbels of a quarter of an inch long remain in the gravel for three or four days and live off their yolk sacks. then form shoals moving into slacker areas where they live off small particles of food. Barbel are predominantly bottom feeders, rooting around and feeding in the gravel bottom of rivers. They feed extensively on bottom living invertebrates, fresh water shrimp, snails, insect larvae, caddis larvae, nymphs, crustaceans and molluscs, grubbing around among the bottom debris for the many micro-organisms which live there. Barbel grow fairly rapidly and mature when they are five or six years old with the female barbel larger than the males. Barbel grow to 21lb 1oz (UK record) with a fish over 7lb considered a good fish and a 10lb barbel a specimen.
The barbel much sought after by anglers for its hard fighting qualities. The barbel is a large powerful fish with the shape of its body perfect for living in fast powerful waters. They are regarded as the hardest fighting coarse fish in the river. Like the carp angler, many anglers devote all their time in pursuit of the barbel. When you hook your first barbel you are unlikely to forget it because when a barbel is hooked it will tear off like a steam train. If you are not tackled up with the correct gear youll have no chance of stopping it let alone landing it. Barbel do not give up easily and fight with great determination and fishing tackle is needed to match the barbel's power. Although barbel are caught all year round they are more of a summer and autumn fish. During the summer months barbel can be found in weir pools and the faster stretches of water. During the winter months barbel favour the deeper more slower waters.

Baits for catching Barbel:
Luncheon meat, sausage meat, cheese and cubes of cheese, worms, dendrobaena worms, red worm, brandlings, grubs, bread (either crust, flake or paste), casters, hemp and caster, maggots, pinkies and sweetcorn have all proved to be successful in catching barbel..

Fishing Methods for catching Barbel:
Barbel can be caught using various methods including float, ledger or feeder but the feeder is considered the best method. Barbel inhabit strong, fast flowing waters, so a good rod with a fixed spool reel fitted with a minimum of 6lb line should be used. Hook size will depend on the size of the fish and the size of the bait used but hook sizes between 12 and 4 are ok. I use barbless hooks because they cause less damage to the fish and are easier to unhook. It is important if legering to use a weight or feeder heavy enough so that it will hold the bait close to the riverbed. The weight will be determined by the strength of flow of the water. A typical approach when barbel fishing is to use a swimfeeder or blockend feeder on the 6lb.mainline with a 24 inch 4lb hook length and size 10 hook baited with a large piece of luncheon meat. When float fishing in faster waters try using a big Avon or a Loafer that carries a lot of shot. Fix the shot near the hook to keep it closer to the river bed.

Advice :
When a barbel is hooked it will NOT give up easily and it will fight until it is exhausted. Try to land and unhook the barbel quickly. When landed and unhooked, hold the barbel in the flowing water facing upstream until it is ready to swim away. This can sometimes take between a couple of minutes and 15 minutes or longer.

Common name:  Carp
Latin name:  Cyprinus carpio
Family:  Cyprinidae

Variations
Common carp, Mirror carp, Leather carp, Linear carp, Grass carp, Crucian Carp, Koi carp

A bit of Carp History:
It was in the early 1300’s that carp were introduced into England and Wales from mainland Europe. Carp were imported by monks as a food source and reared in stew ponds. Today, carp are found in almost every river, lake and pond in the country.
In the early years carp were difficult to catch as Isaac Walton wrote in his book, 'The Compleat Angler', "And my first direction is, that if you will fish for a Carp, you must put on a very large measure of patience, especially to fish for a river Carp: I have known a very good fisher angle diligently four or six hours in a day, for three or four days together, for a river Carp, and not have a bite. And you are to note, that, in some ponds, it is as hard to catch a Carp as in a river." ( read more ). Over the years carp angling became more popular and anglers set out specifically to catch carp. In 1952 the legendary anglers Richard Walker was the first to catch Britain's first 40lb carp. Now in 2008, carp are one of, if not the most, sought after fish by anglers, with many carp societies popping up dedicated to solely to carp. From the days of greenheart and split cane coarse fishing rods we now have specialist carp rods made of high grade carbon with Zirconium ceramic guides and electronic bite alarms.

Carp are not as popular in Australia:
Carp in Australia are described as pest and it is illegal to return a carp to the water once caught.

Extract from - New South Wales Department of Primary Industries
In high densities carp can contribute to increased water turbity, nutrient loads and algal concentrations. They also play a part in erosion of stream banks as well as reductions in the numbers and diversity of aquatic plants, native fish and macro-invertebrates.
Along with habitat degradation, poor water quality, reduced environmental flows and barriers to migration, carp have been identified as a major threat to Australia's freshwater fisheries. They should not be returned to the water alive and strict penalties apply for translocation of carp. Live carp may not be used as bait.
Check the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries web site or read more at http://www.coarsefish.net


Description of and habitat Carp:
There are different variants of carp, the main being:-
Common carp - fully scaled carp
Mirror carp - scaled with large, uneven mirror like scales. Where there are no scales the body is smooth.
Linear carp - scale less except for a row of large scales that run along the lateral line on both sides.
Leather carp - smooth bodied, virtually unscaled except near dorsal fin.
Grass carp - similar to the common carp but normally has a longer, thinner body.
Ghost carp - same as the common carp but it is all white with two black eyes.
Koi carp - this is more of an ornamental fish. Similar to the common carp but its colours include orange, black, red, yellow, and a combination of these colours.
The reasoning behind the variants is supposedly:- Carp were bred by the monks in 'stew' ponds and bred for eating. Descaling them was quite a task that no-one liked, so they were bred with less scales (= less messing about descaling). Makes sense but I'm not sure if this is correct!
Similar to the barbel, a carp has four barbules its mouth. The carp is brown to greenish brown or golden brown in colour with a lighter brown, cream underside. The leather carp and mirror carp are usually a darker colour than the common carp. Carp are amongst the longest living fish species in the Britain and live up to around 20 years of age but carp of 60 years have been recorded. (Raspberry, a female living in Redmire Pool, Herefordshire, who is believed to be at least 60 years old)
The 2008 British carp record is 67lb caught by John Bird at Connington Lake in Ashford. The carp is known as Two Tone. Don't expect to catch a carp this big, this is a specimen carp and carp of this size are few in Britain. A Carp of 10lb to 20lb is more likely.
Carp are found in all waters, but are fished for predominantly in stillwaters. The carp feed extensively on bottom living invertebrates, fresh water shrimp, snails, insect larvae, caddis larvae, nymphs, crustaceans and molluscs, grubbing around among the bottom debris for the many micro-organisms which live there. They will also consume water plants and fish fry.

Baits for catching Carp:
Luncheon meat, boilies, trout pellets, Chum mixer or any other dog or cat biscuits, tiger nuts, peanuts, maize, worms, dendrobaena worms, red worm, brandlings, bloodworm, bread (either crust, punch, flake or paste), casters, maggots, pinkies, and sweetcorn. Carp are also caught using a floating bait like bread crust. Carp respond well to groundbaiting so if you can, pre-bait the area you are going to fish. Lay a bed of groundbait using brown crumb or continental groundbait with hemp or sweetcorn, casters, chopped up worms or a mix of these and some of your hook bait mixed in. Tiger nuts and peanuts are also used for groundbaiting but these should be thoroughly soaked beforehand.

Fishing Methods for catching Carp:
Carp are caught using various methods including float, ledger or feeder. The feeder or ledger is generally the first method anglers try when fishing for carp and is a popular method used by specimen anglers fishing for carp. There are also many baits for catching carp and some carp anglers swear by the use of boilies. Although boilies are a good bait don't overlook the other baits such as sweetcorn and those listed above. A guide to the basic tackle needed for carp fishing is; a rod with a 2 lb test curve (or a heavy feeder rod) fitted with a fixed spool reel filled with 10 lb main line and 18 - 24 inch 4 lb hook length and size 4 hook. Throw some 'free' offerings into the water where you are about to fish then get tackled up. If feeder fishing, bait your hook and use an open-end feeder filled with a groundbait mix with some of your hook bait mixed in. Cast in over the free offerings and when the feeder has reached the bottom, wind up the slack in the line then wind in a bit more till there is a sleight bend on your rod tip.

 A MUST - always carry and use a carp mat for unhooking your carp.

Common name:  Chub
Latin name:  Leuciscus cephalus
Family:  Cyprinidae

Description and habitat of Chub
Nicknames include old rubber lips, loggerhead, chavender and chevin.
The chub is mainly a river fish found in slow moving rivers to the faster moving rivers and weirs especially where trees or bushes overhang the water. The chub is also found in ponds and lakes and is now being stocked in commercial fisheries. The chub is a thick set fish with a large blunt head. It has a long and cylindrical body with large greenish/brown scales that have a slight black edging across the back working down to a lighter golden flank and a light belly with a dark brown or black tail. The dorsal fin of the chub is a greyish/green colour, with all the other fins being orange/red. The chub has a large mouth with thick rubbery lips and a voracious appetite and will eat almost anything. When smaller, the chub is sometimes mistaken for dace as both the chub and the dace have similar body and fin colouring. Identification is by the shaping of the dorsal and anal fins. The chub has convex shaped fins while the dace is concave. Small chub often swim in shoals and as they grow the larger specimens usually become solitary. An average size chub is 2½ - 3lb. Natural food for chub include; invertebrates, crustaceans, insects, flies, mayfly, caddis fly, larvae, worms, fish fry, berries from overhanging bushes i.e. elderberry. Larger chub will eat smaller fish such as minnows, roach and dace. Chub are known for being gluttonous and will eat just about anything. Unlike other fish the chub will feed throughout the year be it a hot summer afternoon or freezing winter morning.

Baits for catching Chub:
Worms, lob worms, redworms, cheese (especially the smelly cheese), cheese paste, bread (either crust, flake or paste), maggots, pinkies, casters, pellets, hemp and tares, wasp grubs, slugs, black slugs are a good chub bait, sweetcorn, luncheon meat, sausage meat, berries and elderberries, shrimps, cockles (fresh not frozen or pickled in vinegar), boilies. For the bigger chub use a bigger bait. Chub are also caught using plugs and lures and also by fly fishing.

Fishing Methods for catching Chub:
Chub can be caught using various methods including float, ledger, feeder, free-lining, spinning with lures and even fly fishing. The venue will determine the best method. A medium rod with a fixed spool reel fitted with a minimum of 3lb line should be used. Hook size of 16 up to a 4 but this will depend on the size of the bait used. I use barbless hooks because they cause less damage to the fish and are easier to unhook. A typical approach when chub fishing in rivers or flowing waters is trotting. Use a stick float or in faster waters a big Avon or a Loafer that carries a lot of shot. The float and shotting pattern will depend on the speed of the water flow and where in the water the chub are located. Plumb the water to get the depth and start by stringing the shot out button style and letting the float and baited hook flow at the same speed as the water. The baited hook needs to be in front of the float so hold back (stop the float) for a couple of seconds every couple of yards or so. (the reason for this is the current nearer the river bed is slower than the surface so holding back the float will allow the baited hook to stay in front - you'll get the hang of it!). When trotting remember to feed every cast. After a few run throughs if you get no bites try altering the shot by moving it nearer the hook or bunching every second shot together. If fishing a fast flowing water try using an Avon type float and fix the shot nearer the hook to keep it closer to the river bed. Another method is free-lining. This is ok where there is little flow on the water. Attach a single swan shot (SSG) about a foot up the line from the hook and fish a large piece of luncheon meat or bread. The bait will bounce along the river bed and hopefully be intercepted by the chub. The feeder rod can also be used. Make sure you use enough weight to hold the bait on the bottom of the river bed. Start with a 24 inch hook length, bait your hook, fill you feeder with maggots or casters and cast in. If after a few casts you don't get a bite try varying the hook length from the feeder until you start getting bites Chub can also be caught on plugs and spinners. On slower moving rivers / waters try fishing floating crust. This can be a perfect approach on its day. Chub love bread so don't be afraid to use quite large pieces.

A couple of tips.
1: Tackle up away from your peg because chub are very wary fish and can soon be scared away. the vibrations you make next to the water can frighten the chub away and when you are stood near the water your profile against the skyline can scare them away.
2: Once hooked a chub will swim straight for any rushes or underwater obstacles like submerged trees or tree roots and snag you up.

Common name:  Crucian Carp
Latin name:  Carassius carassius
Family:  Cyprinidae

Description and habitat of Crucian Carp
The Crucian Carp (Carassius carassius) is amongst the smallest members of the family Cyprinidae, which includes other fish such as the Common Carp. Although of the same family as the Common Carp, the Crucian Carp is different in that it doesn't have barbules and rarely reaches a weight above 3.3lb (1.5 kg). Crucian Carp vary in colour from gold to bronze but mainly have a brownish colouring across the back with gold or greyish green sides leading down to a yellowish or white belly. They usually have a very rounded body with a covering of small scales in an even pattern and the reddish fins of the Crucian are rounded with a convex dorsal fin. I have read that Crucian Carp can often interbreed with the Common, Mirror or Leather Carp which can present the angler with some confusion to the identity of the fish. It is believed to have been imported from Germany around the 18th century. The Crucian Carp is a very hardy and extremely adaptable fish able to survive in ponds and lakes with poor water quality with little oxygen that would prove fatal to most other species. They spawn mainly on water plants around the months of May to June. The eggs hatch within a week but the fish stay attached to the plants for two or three days to feed on the yolk sack before swimming off. When they are older they usually swim in shoals of fish of around the same age and weight. Natural food of the Crucian Carp include insect larvae, small crustaceans, zooplankton and fauna. Although mainly a bottom feeder, The Crucian Carp will feed at all levels and are often seen taking small insects from the surface of the water during sunny days.

Fishing Methods for catching Crucian Carp:
As with all fish, Crucian Carp can be caught using all methods of angling including float, ledger or feeder but the float seems best by far. Light tackle is the order of the day fished on or just off the bottom near reeds or around surface plants. When fishing using Caster as bait, hooked through the end; if you get bites but upon striking you find the Crucian Carp has left you with an empty half shell try burying the hook totally inside the caster. Darker casters are more buoyant in the water, so choose the darker caster to balance out the weight of the hook. This makes the hooked caster fall through the water more naturally at the same rate as your loose feed. Heavy groundbaiting or pre-baiting with groundbait is unnecessary. It is best to feed groundbait sparingly if you do use it and use a fine groundbait to cause a 'cloud' in the water. A very small piece of bread flake squeezed onto a size 16 hook can often produce good results. Don’t squeeze the flake onto the hook too hard because you want little bits to flake off to tempt the fish and if you retrieve your float and the bread is still on the hook you’ve squeezed it on to tightly!

Baits for catching Crucian Carp:
The most common baits to catch Crucian Carp on are maggots, casters, bread (either punch, flake or paste), pinkies, small red worm, brandlings, bloodworm, sweetcorn, small pieces of cheese and small pieces of diced luncheon meat.

Common name:  Dace
Latin name:  Leuciscus leuciscus
Family:

Description and Habitat of Dace
The Dace is a fast, lively, active fish, nicknamed 'the Dart', because of the way it darts through the fast flowing waters.
The Dace is closely related to the Chub but is a more streamlined fish and distinguished from the Chub by its anal and dorsal fins which are both concave, whereas the Chub's anal and dorsal fins are convex and red in colour. Dace also closely resemble the Roach in appearance, both in size and shape but the Roach has red eyes and the Dace have yellow eyes. Dace have a slender body, narrow pointed head with large yellow eyes and a small mouth. The body of the Dace is - greyish blue back with silvery flanks, white belly and the tail is deeply forked. The ventral and anal fins are white, tinged with pale red and the dorsal, pectoral and caudal fins tipped with black. Depending on local climate and water temperature, Dace generally spawn between March and May, laying their pale orange eggs on a sandy or gravel bed or on aquatic plants. Dace are know to hybridise producing Dace/Chub and Dace/Rudd hybrids. This hybridisation makes identification rather difficult. Dace do not grow to big heavyweights and a fish of 8 ounces is considered a good catch. The British rod-caught record Dace was caught by Simon Ashton in 2002 from the River Weir and weighed 1 lb 5 oz 2dr. The average life span of Dace is around seven to ten years.
Dace prefer clean, well oxygenated water, and can be found in shoals in mid water or the fast flowing upper layers of water especially around weirs and weir pools. Although predominantly found in rivers and streams with a sand or gravel substrate, the Dace can also be found in lakes and stillwaters, probably introduced by man or through floods. Natural foods for Dace is algae, worms, insects, larvae of aquatic insects, snails and small crustaceans. Dace are often seen feeding from the surface, taking flies and non-aquatic insects which have fallen into the water.

Fishing Methods for catching Dace:
As Dace are usually fished for in fast running water, the method I use when fishing for Dace is stick float fishing. Because Dace are quick to feel resistance on the line and tend to drop bait easily use the lightest stick float possible. In the summer the stick float, with shot spread evenly down the line, hook size 22 to 16 baited with single castor or maggot should be set to fish from just below mid-water - holding back from time to time to let the bait rise nearer to the surface. This rise and fall of the bait will often tempt the Dace into biting. Feeding little and often keeps the Dace interested as they become more confident they can become avid feeders, with more confident bites. In the winter it has been said Dace tend to hole up in potholes or depressions on the riverbed. As I don't fish for Dace in the winter I cannot say what method is best. If you do or have, please let me know what tactics you use so that I can include it on this page.

Baits for catching Dace:
Because of their small mouth the main baits for catching Dace are casters, maggots, pinkies and squat's. Alternatively bloodworm, a small red worm, bread punch or small piece of bread flake can catch dace. Dace have also been known to be caught by fly fishermen using small flies although this was more by chance
 

Common name:  Perch
Latin name:  Perca fluviatilis
Family: Percidae

Description and habitat of Perch
Nickname ‘Stripey’
The perch has a flat-sided greenish body graduating down to a white belly. It has bright red/orange pelvic fins, two dorsal fins with five or more broad black vertical stripes down the sides. It has a row of sharp pointed spines along the dorsal fin so be careful when handling the perch. The body of the perch is rough to the touch as the small scales are imbedded deep in the skin. The perch will probably be the first fish an angler catches because they are a very aggressive predator that will bite at almost anything. The perch live in still, slow and fast running water, lakes, ponds, rivers and canals. Perch can be found where there is underwater obstacles or structures, tree roots, weed beds and overhanging trees, these are all good places to hide and ambush anything edible. Larger perch will eat smaller fish such as minnows, roach and dace. Natural food for perch include; crustaceans, insects, flies, mayfly, caddis fly, larvae, worms and all fish fry. The average size perch is 4oz - 1lb with anything over 2lb considered a specimen.

Fishing Methods for catching Perch:
Perch can be caught using various methods including float, ledger, feeder, free-lining, spinning with lures and even fly fishing. The venue will determine the best method. Most perch are caught more in the summer months but can be caught throughout the year.  A medium rod with a fixed spool reel fitted with a 3lb line, hook size of 16 - 10 depending on the bait used is ok. I find the best bait for catching perch is a lobworm hooked through the middle with a small piece of rubber pushed onto the hook to prevent the worm slipping off. After hooking the lobworm I pinch off the tail of the worm, this releases a scent into the water which will hopefully attract the perch. Used in conjunction with chopped worm this is a deadly combination. I always use barbless hooks because they cause less damage to the fish and are easier to unhook.
On stillwaters, lakes and ponds, try float fishing using a waggler with a big lobworm on a size 10 hook. Plumb the depth and fish overdepth by 6 inches. Use chopped worm mixed in your groundbait and throw a couple of balls in to start. If you know there is an underwater feature in your swim, cast near to this. The chopped worm will attract the perch which will hopefully take your lobworm. If you get no bite after a few minutes, try twitching your bait (reel in a couple of turns) this sometimes induces the perch to bite.
A typical approach when perch fishing in rivers or flowing waters is trotting as I described under Fishing methods for catching Chub. Use a stick float or in faster waters a big Avon or a Loafer that carries a lot of shot. The float and shotting pattern will depend on the speed of the water flow and where in the water the perch are located. Plumb the water to get the depth and start by stringing the shot out button style and letting the float and baited hook flow at the same speed as the water. The baited hook needs to be in front of the float so hold back (stop the float) for a couple of seconds every couple of yards or so. (the reason for this is the current nearer the river bed is slower than the surface so holding back the float will allow the baited hook to stay in front - you'll get the hang of it!). Feed chopped worm every second or third cast to attract the perch. After a few run throughs if you get no bites try altering the shot by moving it nearer the hook or bunching every second shot together. If fishing a fast flowing water try using an Avon type float and fix the shot nearer the hook to keep it closer to the river bed. Another method is free-lining. This is ok where there is little flow on the water. Attach a single swan shot (SSG) about a foot up the line from the hook and again fish a large lobworm on the hook. The lobworm will bounce along the river bed and hopefully be intercepted by the perch. The feeder rod can also be used. Make sure you use enough weight to hold the bait on the bottom of the river bed. Start with a 24 inch hook length, bait your hook with a lobworm , fill you feeder with groundbait containing chopped worm and cast in. Perch can also be caught using plugs and spinners. Spinning is a good way of fishing for perch as it allows you to move up and down the water and find where the perch are.

Baits for catching Perch:
Worms, lobworms, dendrobaena worms, red worm, brandlings, minnow, casters, maggots. Also caught using plugs, lures and spinners. The perch has also been known to be caught on flies used by trout fishermen.

Common name:  Rudd
Latin name:  Scardinius erythrophthalmus
Family:

Quick Description:
Rudd are often confused with Roach but can be identified by three main differences and these are; it's dorsal fin is set further back, the eyes have yellow to orange irises compared to a Roach which is red and the mouth curves upwards. Fishing for Rudd is similar to fishing for Roach.

Baits for catching Rudd:
Worms, small red worm, brandlings, bloodworm, bread (either punch, flake or paste), casters, maggots, pinkies.

More to be added

Common name:   Pike
Latin name:  Esox lucius
Family:

Baits for catching Pike:
Dead baits, live baits, worms. Also caught using lures and spinners

More to be added

Common name:   Zander
Latin name:  Stizostedion lucioperca
Family:

Similar to pike though not related.

Baits for catching Zander:
Dead baits, live baits, worms. Also caught using lures and spinners

More to be added

Common name:   Eel
Latin name:   Anguilla anguilla
Family:

Description and habitat of the Eel:
The eel has an elongated body similar to that of a snake. Longish head with rounded eyes. The eyes are small in young eels and large in older and silver eels. The eel has a protruding lower jaw longer than the upper jaw. The teeth are small and set in bands in both jaws and in a patch on vomer. Small and vertical gill openings restricted to the sides. The dorsal fin originates far behind the pectorals fins and the dorsal and anal fins confluent with caudal fin. The anal fin set slightly behind anus, well back from origin of dorsal fin. The pectoral fins of the eel are small and rounded. Lateral line conspicuous. It has minute elliptical scales embedded in the skin. Adults in freshwater are greenish-brown on black, whitish-yellowish on belly. During the silver-eel stage during spawning migration the colouration changes to blackish on the back and bright silvery on sides and belly. In the leptocephali and glass-eel stage the colouration is transparent and in the elvers stage greenish-brown.

The young European eels live in freshwater where they stay for a period of 6-12 years for males and 9-18 years for females. As the eels become sexually mature they migrate to the sea, where they move to the spawning grounds in the Sargasso Sea. During migration the eels do not feed.

Once the mature adult eel enters the Sargasso Sea they spawn in late winter and spring. The adult eels do not leave the Sargasso Sea and are thought to die after spawning, but their progeny, the leaf-shaped larvae, leptocephali, are brought to the continental shelf of Europe by the Gulf Stream, a journey that can take between 6 -12 months and several years.

Before entering coastal zones and estuaries the larvae metamorphose into transparent elvers (glass eels). As the eels colonize the freshwater areas of Europe they are known as yellow eels (pigmented eels). During the last summer of their freshwater life, eels become sexually mature and silvery in appearance (silver eels). At this stage their eyes become bigger, their heads broader and the content of body fat increases.

The European eel is found in rivers draining into the North Atlantic, Baltic and Mediterranean Seas. It is also distributed along the coast of Europe from the Black Sea to the White Sea.

Baits for catching Eels:
Deadbaits and deadbait sections, Worms, big lob worms, maggots and casters.

Fishing Methods for catching Eels:
Eels are found in almost all waters but stillwaters are your best bet. The best time to catch eels is early dawn or at dusk and through the night but they can be caught throughout the day. The eel feeds all year around with July to October noted as the best months to catch them. Eels feed almost exclusively on the bottom and are usually found where there is underwater obstacles or among reeds. Various methods including float, ledger or feeder are used to catch eels. Float fishing with a waggler over a bed of groundbait, slightly over depth close to reeds is a good tactic. The feeder is also considered a good method. As a guide a match, float or feeder rod can be used with a reel filled with 4 lb main line with 3 lb hook length and size 16 - 14 hook. They respond very well to groundbaiting and sometimes when groundbaiting for other fish you will end up catching an eel. If you are going fishing for eels and have any old bait, maggots left from a previous fishing session, don't throw them away, use them in your groundbait for you eel fishing session. Lay a bed of groundbait using brown crumb or continental groundbait with your old bait, maggots, casters and chopped up worms mixed in. When you hook an eel, especially a small eel, it will almost certainly curl up and get tangled in your line. It will also make a mess of your line with the slime from its body. To unhook an eel there are unhooking tubes, a tube of approximately 1.5 - 2 inch diameter and a foot long with a slit along the side. The idea is to hold your line taut and slide the tube onto it via the slit and then slide the tube down over the eel until its head appears and unhook it.  Another method, very unusual !, that I have tried and works, is described  here  in my tips section.