Hey,
just say this runaway thread on the ruffe-bullhead debate. Great stuff. I will happily cede to the wisdom of the forum pool and change the ref to millers thumb or bullhead.
Its the only one I've caught and on the middle severn they dont seem that common on the stretches I fish so I put him back (not used for pike bait).
They are pretty unusual on the parts of the staffs and worcs canal I fish as well.
Thanks for your views everyone. The confusion was caused partly becuase it seems the colouration of ruffe (and bullehads) seems to vary from silver to jet black depending on where they are living. This probably made my fishing pals's I.D. which i followed, not very accurate. So thanks for chipping in, I will change it to bullhead, at least that is another species caught! I netted a loach the other day and it took me a while to identify it. It did seem to sting me slightly like a nettle but an authority on loach told me it was common and not spined as a species so the sting must have actually have been a nettle!. Loach are not often seen by most river anglers since they usually burrow on the bottom. They are eaten by barbel apparently, but I put it back being quite ecologically considerate.. These small fish, loach and ruffe especially, are taken as indicators of good healthy water systems apparently. Certainly where I live ruffe and even bullheads seem far less common than roach or gudgeon.Thanks everyone on the ruffe-bullhead debate for the correction.
thanks also for the nice comments on the pike colouration, it was from a canal and did look extraordinary, certainly re-affirmed the beauty of the species for me