Barbel (Barbus barbus)
With its long torpedo shaped body, the Barbel is quite possibly the hardest pound for pound fighting fish there is. It has a dark green / grey back that blends in to golden sides and a white pale under body. The barbells eyes sit high in its head and the mouth is surrounded by four barbules. Barbel prefers clean fast flowing waters and feeds on clear gravel patches on the rivers bed.
Bleak (Alburnus alburnus)
Often found in slow flowing rivers or still waters feeding near the surface, the bleak is a fish that can be found in large shoals. Although the Bleak will feed in shallow water or near the surface, they will often seek out deeper waters during the night. The Bleak has a long and lean big scaled straight silver body with a green back, cream underbelly and pale orange / gray fins.
Bream (Abramis brama)
This fish has flat tall sides and a thin cross sectioned body. The bream has dark back that becomes green / grey as the back blends in to the deep flat sides. The fins are grey and dark in colour. The young bream will have bright silvery sides whereas the older bream will get darker (golden).Bream (especially young) are shoal fish that prefer deep still or slow running water.
Chub(Leuciscus cephalus)
Has a long streamlined body with gray /golden scales that are black edged with a pale creamy underbelly. The Chub has red tipped fins and a dark green / brown back. They are predominantly a river fish that prefer hiding in snags and over hanging bushes and can be found feeding on clear gravel patches. Essentially a predatory fish the Chub are quite happy eating all types of food. The small Chub are easily confused with the Dace but the way to tell one from the other is that a Dace will have a concaved dorsal and anal fin where as the Chubs fins are convex.
Carp(Cyprinus carpio)
The carp are not native to UK waters but can be found in all still waters and slow flowing rivers. Possibly the most idealised fish in UK waters the carp can be found in lakes, ponds and some slow flowing rivers. The common carp are light / dark gold in colour with a streamlined body and small uniform scales. The Mirror carp has a more rounded shape to its body and tends to be more ‘stocky’. The scales on the body are generally large and non uniform in pattern but there are exceptions to the rule. Fish can be found with a linear line of scales down each side of the fish (linear mirror) and with a full set of large random scales all over the body (fully scaled). The carp have two barbules on either side of their mouths which are used to locate food. They can often be found rooting around in lilies and reed beds in their search of food.
Crucian Carp (Carassius carassius)
These fish have deep golden sides with a dark brown back and a cream underbelly. The crucian carp is a barbules less bottom feeding fish but can be seen feeding on the surface on hot bright days. It is a smaller member of the Carp family that will not reach the same sizes as its much larger cousin. The Crucian carp can be found in ponds and lakes but rarely found in rivers.
Dace (Leuciscus leuciscus)
Sometimes known as the dart these can be found in large shoals. They prefer the faster flowing stretches of the rivers and can often be seen feeding off of flies and insects on the water’s surface. The Dace has a streamlined body with silver / green sides, a dark back and pale grey / brown fins. The Dace is very often mistaken for a small chub as they are very similar but the way to tell one from the other is that a Dace will have a concaved anal and dorsal fin, where as a Chubs fins are convex.
Greyling(Thymallus thymallus)
Often called the lady of the stream the Grayling can occasionally be found in still waters but they thrive predominantly in reasonably quick running water. The presence of Grayling in the water is a sign of its purity. It is a game fish and a member of the Salmon family and very often run with small trout. The Grayling has a streamlined body which is light gray to green in colour with blue speckled spots periodically dotted along its length and a dark green back. The Grayling can also be identified by its proud square shaped dorsal fin which is like no other.
Perch (Perca fluviatillis)
These can be found in nearly all UK waters. It has a dark back that that blends around in to perfectly striped sides which the perch uses for camouflage. It has two dorsal fins, the first one a large spinney dorsal fin and the second being a smaller softer fin. The perch is a predatory fish that uses its black stripped sides to discreetly hide in the weeds and reeds ready to dart out and ambush its prey. The young fish sometimes hunt in packs where they will readily feed on small fry whereas the older perch are solitary fish much like the pike.
Pike (Esox lucius)
Considered as the ultimate freshwater predator the pike is totally unmistakeable in appearance to any other fresh water fish. It has a long streamlined body with green and black camouflaged sides which leads to a fearsome mouth which is home to multitude sharp teeth. The pike is a solitary fish that spend its life hunting. It will usually lie in wait or slowly moving through weeds and reeds preying on unsuspecting fish in particularly the sick and weaker ones. Pike will be found in most still and slow running waters.
The Roach (Rutilus rutilus)
This is one of the most common fish in UK waters and is a member of the carp family. Its dark back turns blue / green as it blends in to the flanks. The flanks themselves are silver in colour and the undersides of the belly are much paler. The roach also has red fins and bright red eyes. Roach are generally a shoal fish and can be found in nearly all still and slow flowing UK waters.
Rudd(Scardinius erythrophthalmus)
Often confused at first glance with the Roach the Rudd, like the Roach is mainly found in still and slow running waters. It is primarily a surface feeding fish that favours overgrown areas such as reeds, lilies and weeds. The Rudd has an upturned mouth and its eyes have orange to yellow coloured irises. The older fish have deep golden sides whereas the younger fish are a pale yellow. Both have a greenish dark back, pale creamy underside and bright red / pink fins.
Tench (Tinca tinca)
Sometimes known as the doctor fish because of its mucous like slime on its body which legend says has medicinal purposes, the Tench is a sturdily built fish that has small eyes and an olive green body with small scales and dark fins. The Tench can be found in predominantly still waters but they do also live in slow flowing rivers. Tench are predominantly a bottom feeding fish that can be found in the more shallow weedy locations such as lily pads, reeds and weeds.
Wells Catfish (Silurus glanis)
A predatory fish, the catfish can be found stocked in some lakes although it prefers larger deep rivers and lakes. It has a long body with no scales, an extremely large head and an enormous mouth. The Catfish has a dark green mottled body with its anal fin extending all the way back to its tale. It can be found in the deeper darker areas of the water where it will feed on fish, worms and even mammals.
Zander (Stizostedion lucioperca)
A formidable predator fish that is not native to UK waters, the Zander prefers deep dark waters where it will hide out preferring to hunt at low light times of the day. It is said to be a member of the perch family where it has two dorsal fins like the perch and a black stripped camouflaged body. The Zander is a pack hunter that has a fearsome set of teeth that they use to inflict serious damage on their prey.
