Bass & Burbot

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senan ensko

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Have read in the past about freshwater Bass being introduced to a handful of UK waters many moons ago. Presume these stocks have died out. Anybody have any idea how long they survived? Also, burbot. I believe this has also gone the way of the dodo. Just curious about this really. I know some Brook trout populations have survived in Scotland and Wales(?). If anyone can shed any light on this I would be grateful.
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Mark Wintle

Mark Wintle

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One Dorset water that I fish had a stock from 1935 to 1980 (largemouth black bass). The bass bred in there successfully, but eventual changes to the water caused by introduction of carp wiped them out. Introduced by Leney of Redmire carp fame. Allegedly a nearby lake still has a few.. Also it was long rumoured that some of Leney's stock fish were in a Surrey lake though never did get to the bottom of this.
 
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Ashe Hurst

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info i have dated 1979 suggests that bass are located in a clay pit nr wareham, dorset and in surry , but these are in decline.

Burbot could be found in east anglian rivers and east yorkshire rivers and large lakes.

Last recorded UK catch was late 60s early 70s i think. not sure from where.
 
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The Monk

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cvheck out some of my earlier threads, maybe a year and half ago, i put some information out on the british Black Bass and the Burbot, got some interesting replies back,

The Black Bass were introduced in the 60s into Milden Hall AAF base from memory, they were featured in the 1960s brook bond tea picture card sets
 
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Ron Troversial Clay

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There are some gravel pits near Lakenheath with small mouth black bass in them. Catching them is the perogative of American Airforce Officers I understand.

Hardly fair that. How can they let foreigners fish our waters exclusively?

I remember some years ago, being on a trip with Tag Barnes in the fens. We were close to Lakenheath and went down this side road to fish for pike in a drain there. We passed through some gates which we opened. There were signs on them saying: "Keep Out."

Now old Tag Barnes never let keep out notices bother him.

After driving up this road for about 200 yards we were challenged by two USA guards and an officer. They ordered us to turn back.

Now old Tag was a former British Green Beret Sergeant, decorated too. He walked up to the yankee officer and demanded why the officer, a bloody foreigner, wanted to to stop us in OUR own country. The officer shouted that this land was under control of the US government.

"Is it hell as like", shouted Tag, "I had enough trouble with the likes of you bastards in Burma. It's not your f....g land it's British Land Mac, now get out of my way.

The American officer and two GIs pulled away a let us through.

We caught 5 pike later that day.

What a great guy was old Tag Barnes.
 
Mark Wintle

Mark Wintle

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Ashe

The book of 1979 refers to the same waters that I was referring to. Keith Elliott discovered that Chris Yates has Leney's stocking records and we were able to check the actual dates of the stockings. I caught 7 black bass between 1970 and 1977, the best was ......wait for it ...one ounce. Best from the Wareham (my home town) water was 2-6. Leney stocked quite a few waters though generally with little success. Much further back, others stocked small mouth bass as well.
 
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Martin Scullion

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it's probably too cold here to sustain a viable population of Bass, but give global warming another few years & who knows !!!
 
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Ron Troversial Clay

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Small Mouth Bass (Micropterus dolemeu) will certainly live here. They live quite well in European countries such as Sweden. They belong the the Northern parts of North America where cold winters are common.

Thes fish also like running water. They are extremely aggressive predators and have colonised many river systems and high altitude lakes in South Africa. I have caught lots of them. They are one of the hardest fighting freshwater species in the world.

Darned good eating too.
 
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jason fisher

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we've got too many american invaders in our water without introducing them too
 
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Bill Eborn

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There is a bit of info on Burbot here http://sea-river.com/128_3_gb.php it's a shame they aren't more common as if this article is to be believed they will feed in cold very coloured water. Didn't they used to be a lot more common than they are now and if so should there be a campaign to reintroduce the Burbot?
 
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jason fisher

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yes bill they were a lot more common than they are now they weren't extinct for a start.
 
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The Monk

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being extinct without doubt has a significant effect on how common you are!
 
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The Monk

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I suppose if you were extinct(ish)then you wouldnt be as common as you could be?
 
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The Monk

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on the other hand, if you were extinct, then it would be common for you simply not to be about?
 
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jason fisher

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i would back a campaign to return the burbot to our waters they are afterall a native species, but not to introduce americam black bass. If you want to catch american fish go to america there's plenty there.
we've got their trout and look what they've done for our waters, what's wrong with the brown trout it's ours an it's much nicer than a rainbow.

we've got their crayfish and look what they're doing to our waters.
 
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The Monk

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grey squirrels too

I`m not so sure about re-introductions though, what do we know about the reasons behind the original burbot extinction, could the same not happen again?

as a child I can remember catching Bullhead, yet I dont see so many around these days, pope as well, are these species cyclical?
 
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The Monk

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we had sturgeon in our rivers and tunny on the East coast, all gone
 
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jason fisher

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weren't burbot eaten to very low stock levels in the first place.

i've got to admit though i dont know if the real reason for their disapearance has never been established
 
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