Rare or unusual fish that you have caught in the UK

[Leeroy999]

not a fish but caught a big terrapin once and everytime i tried to get the hook out the bugger kept putting his head back in its shell!

[Steve Burke]

The most unusual catch I've had is dace from 2 different stillwaters. One was known to hold dace, the other wasn't. On the first the dace may have got in as discarded livebaits. The second held no predators though.

 

Edit note: Both these waters are a long way from any river.

Edited February 2, 2008 by Steve Burke

[bluerinse]

Having read the reply’s it seems the UK has been invaded by terrapin’s. In years gone by they would have died out in the cold winter, but as we now don’t seem to have them anymore I am predicting that they could become as much as a pest as Crayfish.

Give it 10 more years and we could be infested!!

 

I was amazed at how many anglers have caught them. Those are only the ones caught, how many are there out there and what damage are they doing.

 

I guess you have to blame the popularity in the 80’s and 90’s of the teenage mutant ninja turtles, all those kids that had them grew up and I guess the parents just dumped them in the nearest bit of water when the novelty had worn off

[captain cojones]

Having read the reply’s it seems the UK has been invaded by terrapin’s. In years gone by they would have died out in the cold winter, but as we now don’t seem to have them anymore I am predicting that they could become as much as a pest as Crayfish.

Give it 10 more years and we could be infested!!

 

I was amazed at how many anglers have caught them. Those are only the ones caught, how many are there out there and what damage are they doing.

 

I guess you have to blame the popularity in the 80’s and 90’s of the teenage mutant ninja turtles, all those kids that had them grew up and I guess the parents just dumped them in the nearest bit of water when the novelty had worn off

 

some waters here hold loads of them. some of the hunters have a new game though.....its called "blow the friggin terrapin to bits"

they wait till they surface for air....and in that second...bang....end of ninja.

[Peter Sharpe]

I didn't know that there was anywhere in the country that wasn't swarming with sticklebacks. Years ago, my neighbour left a large watering can under his pigeon loft and when he retrieved it several weeks later there was a stickleback in it. I never could work that one out. I have only ever seen one ten spined stickleback, but I have often seen whatever than variety is that you see in the sea.

[azrael]

a golden orfe and a golden rudd

[Barry C]

As kids we used to fish a small farm cattle drink and catch newts one after the other. (sorry newt, hope you're not related).

[Vagabond]

As kids we used to fish a small farm cattle drink and catch newts one after the other. (sorry newt, hope you're not related).

As kids, we used to "fish" for newts in an old disused open-air swimming pool.

The only tackle needed was your bare hand and a two-pound jamjar to transport the newts to other ponds.

 

We would just lie prone on the pool's concrete surround and grab the newts as they came up for air. Mainly Smooth Newts, but some Great Crested Newts also, as they were not so rare in the 1940s as they are now.

[corydoras]

Not a freshwater fish, nor are the particularly rare, but the most unusual fish I have caught in UK waters were Common Dragonets (Callionymus lyra). I've caught loads of them in Loch Long. The dragonet is a beautiful fish that looks like it should be found on the Great Barrier Reef or in a Marine Aquarium rather than from the bottom of a cold Scottish sea loch.

Edited February 21, 2012 by corydoras

[Ken L]

Rumor has it there was a terapin in the red ponds at wigan, that was years ago I never saw one and I think that might be forgotton now, there used to be a warm strech of canal too where a pet shop aparently emptied his tanks before going bust?

Anyone heard these before?

 

Red ear terapins are quite common - unlike the Aligator snapping turtle that was caught at Earlswood Lakes a couple of years back.

I seem to recall claims that it got in there following the TMNT craze but the thing was HUGE. It must have been in there for decades.