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why do barbel like fast water?


The Flying Tench

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I can see why they like a reasonable speed so the silt is washed away and there is clear gravel, with the food they like - shrimps and stuff. And I can see why they have evolved to like oxygenated water. But given a stretch with fast water and medium paced water next to each other, both stretches will have equal amounts of oxygen, and there won't be more shrimps in the fast bit than the medium bit

 

BUT they will need to use more energy in the fast bit which will mean they are able to survive less well than those which choose the medium bit. So you'd think the lazy ones choosing medium paced water would have a survival advantage, wouldn't you?

 

Now grayling are a different matter because more flies will come down per minute in the fast bit. But am I right that barbel don't wait for stuff to come down in the flow very much, despite those caught trotting? Or am I wrong about this? Could this be the answer?

john clarke

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But am I right that barbel don't wait for stuff to come down in the flow very much, despite those caught trotting? Or am I wrong about this? Could this be the answer?

 

 

 

Barbel do like to pick bits off as they float down river as do every other fish in the river. It is a fallacy that barbel will only feed on the bottom, they do come up in the water and take bait. Another fallacy is that barbel don't jump as they do and I've seen them jump three foot straight out of the water just like a salmon.

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Animals which are adapted to exploit a particular niche benefit from less competition from those animals which are not - for instance, perhaps there is more competition from chub and roach in the slower stretches?

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Maybe the faster stretches will contain a higher amount of food matter, such as stonefly and mayfly larvae. I do know that riffles are often described as the powerhouses of the stream, in that this is where most of the benthic primary production goes on, as they recieve more light on the whole, than deeper pools. Anyway, I digress, maybe it is because there is more invertebrate food in the shallower faster water. That said, the faster spots are likely to be more unsettled, the sediment will shift around more than it will in a slower pool, which might not allow many invertebrates to set up station there, but having said that, most invertebrates relocate regularly by drfiting downstream.

 

To conclude, maybe its due to a combination of food availability, oxygen saturation and maybe temperature? Interesting though.

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The water in a river speeds up when restricted in width or depth, when this happens although the velocity increases the pressure is reduced, (Venturi effect). Barbel are often found in these places.

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I know it's a bit controversial, but Barbel do seem to be adapting (and allegedly breeding) in still water. They obviously get enough oxygen, but don't have to work so hard. Who's to say what they like or don't like ;)

As no man is born an artist, so no man is born an angler. Izaac Walton

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Barbel are just perfectly adapted for faster water and turning over the rocks and pebbles looking for food. If you ever get the chance to watch fish in the faster water you should see that most other fish are always on the move, wagging their tails or sheltering behind something, but barbel can just sit there on the bottom doing very little.

 

A tiger does not lose sleep over the opinion of sheep

 

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I'm always surprised how little effort fish seem to expend holding station in what looks like really fast water - even clunky species like chub. Even in the fastest water, on or near the bottom it is usually quite an easy place to sit. Compare that to a trout just under the surface, working really hard to stay still!

And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music

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