Locating barbel

[Anderoo]

Could be wrong, but i think its around the end of may, depending on factors like temperature, water levels etc

 

Cheers Liam. I'll probably be wandering around with a fly rod about that time anyway I'm determined to master (or at least become vaguely competent at) the upstream nymph next spring... looking out for barbel will give me something to do

 

PS a 3lb perch, nice one! The only perch I've had from there were from a ditch that runs into it, during the flooding last winter. Perhaps I should break out the lobs...

Edited October 8, 2007 by Anderoo

[Guest Rabbit]

Just why this river does not produce barbel is a mystery, however it is a diverse river as far as habitat, and trout do seem to dominate, perhaps that is key? I have spent many an hour just walking the banks there and have yet to see a barbel, but dare I say that perhaps the lack of barbel is not such a bad thing, the roach and chub seem to be doing OK. These sort of rivers I love too, and perhaps the river would be spoilt if the barbel brigade descended on its tranquil meadows.

Well at least you have got the Kennet, Thames , Cherwell Marden?? to dabble in , lucky beggar

Edited October 9, 2007 by Rabbit

[Anderoo]

Just why this river does not produce barbel is a mystery, however it is a diverse river as far as habitat, and trout do seem to dominate, perhaps that is key? I have spent many an hour just walking the banks there and have yet to see a barbel, but dare I say that perhaps the lack of barbel is not such a bad thing, the roach and chub seem to be doing OK. These sort of rivers I love too, and perhaps the river would be spoilt if the barbel brigade descended on its tranquil meadows.

Well at least you have got the Kennet, Thames , Cherwell Marden?? to dabble in , lucky beggar

 

That's true! The lack of barbel does ensure peace and quiet, and as you say, the chub and trout are doing well. I've yet to find roach, but the odd dace shows up. The lack of barbel is what makes it challenging - it's likely that I'll never catch one, but I'd be so chuffed if I did.

 

I think I'll be looking towards the Kennet next season...

 

PS it's my feeling that the trout have expanded to fill the gaps left by the barbel. As the barbel population shrunk the trout population appears to have increased. You may be right though - perhaps the trout have pushed them out?

Edited October 9, 2007 by Anderoo

[Errrm]

That's true! The lack of barbel does ensure peace and quiet, and as you say, the chub and trout are doing well. I've yet to find roach, but the odd dace shows up. The lack of barbel is what makes it challenging - it's likely that I'll never catch one, but I'd be so chuffed if I did.

 

I think I'll be looking towards the Kennet next season...

 

Sorry for a slightly offtopic post...

Do rivers with a lot of barbel really get that many anglers? The river I fish regually has double figure barbel caught on it with a few around the 15lb+ caught but in the last 3 times I have been down there I have seen only 4 anglers fishing for barbel and 2 for trout on a stretch that is about 2-2.5 miles long in total there is about 8 miles of the river which the club controls but I hardly ever see anyone fishing there, do some rivers get really bad if big barbel are caught?

 

Errrm

[lutra]

I wouldn't give up on the deeper holes to soon as it is getting to that time of year when they start to fish.

 

Id try a spot of chub fishing in the deep spots through the winter (mild weather) and put a second rod out for the Barbel.

[Anderoo]

You could try getting on some waders and walking the stretch (actually in the water). I've done this before and found barbel where I least expected them!

 

Rich

 

I think that's what Tony Miles used to do when he was exporing the Cherwell in the 90s. On that river he used to look for depressions in the riverbed by the near bank (so he could fish them accurately after dark, just dropping the bait straight off the rod tip).

 

Lutra, that's not a bad idea, although I only ever take one rod (you couldn't really fish 2 rods, it's too small and overgrown). What I tend to do is fish for the chub in daylight and step up the gear at dusk in case a barbel does make an appearance. I'll keep the holes in mind as the water cools.

 

Errrm, I'm sure that if there were barbel this little river would be very busy. Perhaps not so if there were good heads of barbel in other rivers in the area though. Are there many barbel fishing options where you are? If so, that could explain why that river is quiet. Sounds great though!

[Errrm]

Errrm, I'm sure that if there were barbel this little river would be very busy. Perhaps not so if there were good heads of barbel in other rivers in the area though. Are there many barbel fishing options where you are? If so, that could explain why that river is quiet. Sounds great though!

 

That might explain it, I fish in Staffordshire so we have both the trent and the dove to fish.

[Anderoo]

I think I've solved the mystery...

 

I've found out that barbel were stocked into this river, some time around the late 90s/early 00s. I don't know what the stock situation was like before that, but presumably for a stocking to take place there weren't many of them (same as now). They initially did well and then numbers dwindled, until we're at the present day.

 

My conclusion to this is that they are not breeding. Every now and again the EA top up the numbers, and the individual fish are OK. But they dissipate widely and a lot probably end up in the Thames. I expect the ones which stay in the river move to the quietest sections. For some reason they have trouble breeding (no suitable breeding grounds?) and so no proper population is established. If it's restocked, the same thing happens.

 

I don't know if this is true, but the theory makes sense to me...

[Guest Rabbit]

I think I've solved the mystery...

 

I've found out that barbel were stocked into this river, some time around the late 90s/early 00s. I don't know what the stock situation was like before that, but presumably for a stocking to take place there weren't many of them (same as now). They initially did well and then numbers dwindled, until we're at the present day.

 

My conclusion to this is that they are not breeding. Every now and again the EA top up the numbers, and the individual fish are OK. But they dissipate widely and a lot probably end up in the Thames. I expect the ones which stay in the river move to the quietest sections. For some reason they have trouble breeding (no suitable breeding grounds?) and so no proper population is established. If it's restocked, the same thing happens.

 

I don't know if this is true, but the theory makes sense to me...

Interesting point, but I wonder just how important that barbel have a suitable spawning area in the river they inhabit for the rest of the year?

In that barbel travel long distances (up to 50 miles in a week) then what is their motivation to do so? Is it in search of food, or suitable breeding areas? Rules of nature would discount travelling such distances unless there was good reason to do so....my money would be on the breeding instinct.

[lutra]

I think I've solved the mystery...

 

I've found out that barbel were stocked into this river, some time around the late 90s/early 00s. I don't know what the stock situation was like before that, but presumably for a stocking to take place there weren't many of them (same as now). They initially did well and then numbers dwindled, until we're at the present day.

 

My conclusion to this is that they are not breeding. Every now and again the EA top up the numbers, and the individual fish are OK. But they dissipate widely and a lot probably end up in the Thames. I expect the ones which stay in the river move to the quietest sections. For some reason they have trouble breeding (no suitable breeding grounds?) and so no proper population is established. If it's restocked, the same thing happens.

 

I don't know if this is true, but the theory makes sense to me...

If like Mr. rabbit say Barbel can travel 50 miles in a week and i know from the river Ribble that they seem to have the ability to populate an entire river system inside 30 years (no weir stop them). Why do the EA spend time and money putting them in this one? Surely if they wanted to be there they would be as other fish seem to be doing OK.