Anglers casting their lines in the River Lea are being urged to keep an eye out for barbel with a distinctive blue mark.
The Environment Agency released 1,000 juvenile barbel into the River Lea last November at Kings Weir and Fishers Green as part of a wider project to restore barbel populations in the Old River Lea.
Peter Gray, fisheries team leader for the Environment Agency in Berkshire, said: "We’ve responded to concerns of anglers about declining fish stocks, including barbel, and this project will give us some good data to monitor barbel populations.
"The work will also help anglers, and ourselves, increase our knowledge of fish populations in the river, growth-rate and just how far up and downstream the barbel migrate.
"It will give us great information on how well they are thriving."
The fish, marked with a blue dye, were sourced from the Environment Agency’s National Coarse Fish Rearing Unit.
Anglers who catch a marked fish are asked to report it by emailing hnlfm@environment-agency.gov.uk.
Share