Now here’s the rub, this lovely fish now resides in a different lake

Now, as I have more than a passing interest in the carp, my mate e-mailed me a picture of the latest biggy to be caught. Somehow the fish looked familiar, even though it’s current weight of nearly forty pounds was much bigger than anything I had ever caught. That night I got my old photo albums out and checked back through my past captures. There, way back in 1993 was a rather dog eared picture of a twenty pounder that looked remarkably similar. After comparing the scale patterns, position and shape of the fins and body shape I became convinced that it was the same fish. Now here’s the rub, this lovely fish now resides in a different lake! One that I thought about fishing at some time, how many of the other current residents have I caught elsewhere before? This isn’t an isolated case. Back in the early-nineties when I was concentrating on the Upper Great Ouse, many of the barbel were easily recognisable. This was a great aid to the fishing, as it soon became apparent that some fish remained in the same areas, often for weeks on end. Rather than continue to catch the same fish time after time, I was able to judge when I had caught a good percentage of them and move on to new areas. Interestingly, on a carp water that I fished in the early-eighties my friends and I caught over one hundred fish with only two recaptures! Now, for brothers and sisters of the angle not familiar with coarse fishing, the idea that fish should be recognised time after time is pretty alien. Most people still fish for the pot, but us coarse anglers are peculiar in that we just fish for sport. Fish are returned, hopefully to grow larger and certainly to grow a little more cunning. The trout or cod doesn’t get a second chance. Some fish are actually so well known that they have even been christened! Some even without ever being put on the bank! There are several big carp in these parts that are well known, yet have never been caught. Carp are generally the easiest fish to recognise. After all, they are very large, have almost unique scale patterns and are generally caught quite frequently. With a bit of experience though, it is possible to identify individuals of almost any species you care to mention. Here’s a rough guide of how to go about it. Always take colour pictures of both sides of the fish. I know my memory isn’t sharp enough to remember every detail. Body shape may change, particularly in carp and tench, but look at the shape of the head, this remains the same throughout the fish’s life. Does the fish have any noticeable deformities? Look at the position and shape of the fins. Look for any marks or patterns in the scales. Look for damage, re-grown scales or fungus.Big fish generally have characters all of their own and pick up a myriad of marks throughout their long lives. Remember that fish are likely to gain extra marks through time, but if a tell-tale sign is missing, like a certain group of scales, then you are looking at a different fish. Different features are of more or less importance depending upon the species. Barbel, for example tend to get black marks on their bodies as they age, and these can be a good set of markers. Pike have individual scale and colour patterns, and so on. It will take you a while to get your eye tuned in, but remember practice makes perfect.

Being able to identify individual fish is not only of passing curiosity. It is a valuable aid to the growth and condition of the fish and also a guide to when to move to pastures new. Keep good records of your catches and you will be amazed at what you find.