No need to ban ornamentals
We seem to live in a world where we are told what to do and what not to do by
gooding minorities.
Telling children not to do slightly dangerous things like playing conkers or indulging
in great character-forming games like British Bulldog, for instance.
In recent years, anglers have been subjectd to similar calls for various practices
to be banned.
Some members of the Barbel Society try to stop fishery owners form putting barbel
into stillwaters rather than into running water which is their natural habitat.
I have caught barbel from quite a lot of stillwaters myself and always found them
healthy fish that thrive and provide good sport.
I know of waters where lakes and rivers are interconnected and where barbel seem
to prefer to live in the stillwater.
Now a group of people calling themselves The Fish Welfare Group are telling us
we should not stock brightly coloured ornamental fish in waters where anglers
fish.
It is feared that by doing so we could spread diseases that normal species have
no resistance to.
If fish that have been imported from abroad are concerned, then I agree that we
should not import fish.
However, again I see no proof of any drawbacks that have resulted from stocking
ornamentals.
I have enjoyed catching golden tench, golden rudd, golden orfe, goldfish, fancy
goldfish and koi carp. The most beautiful fish I ever landed ans a pure white
koi carp.
My final defence of stocking ornamental fish is that Zyg Gregorek – who
runs the largest commercial fishery in England – has been stocking vaious
kinds of ornamental species of fish into his lakes at Anglers’ Paradise
in the south of England since 1985 with no detriment to the fishing, and to the
delight of his angling customers.
But even I would not put the fish into a keepnet or weigh big catches of the lovely
fish.