In the last five years, the Barbel Society has funded, or part-funded,
the following projects, supporting both habitat work of real conservation
value, and positive research into barbel and barbel fishery management;
Stocking of the River Dane; following pollution of the river, the BS made a
grant to a local club to help establish barbel populations.
Stocking of the River Aire; the BS made a grant to a small club to help improve
barbel populations on the river.
Stour Barbel Project; in partnership with local clubs and the EA, the Society
raised over five thousand pounds towards habitat improvement works on the
river, involving the reintroduction of gravels, and construction of fry bays.
Work on a weir at Throop was recently completed, with the help of 2K from the
Barbel Society, and further works are planned.
The EA and the BS placed 9000 small barbel into the middle reaches of the river
in the last three years as part of the project.
A further 1000 barbel were stocked into the Stour in 0ctober 2012, and plans
for further fry bay construction are in hand for completion in 2013.
Arborfield Weir Project; the Society provided several thousand pounds worth of
gravel and materials to support this EA led Award winning project on the River
Loddon.
Bransford Project; The Society worked in partnership with the EA and
consultants to skylight a stretch of the Teme near Worcester, bringing
life-giving light to the river, as well as providing improved bank stability.
Unstable willows were pollarded and coppiced, and woody debris placed in the
river, along with planting of fresh willow pollards to retain bank collapse.
Funds from the BS were also utilised by the Severn Rivers Trust for other
habitat works on the Teme. A second phase of this work is planned for 2013.
St Patricks Steam Project; the Society paid for a fish survey and report on
this Thames tributary, and will support the resulting habitat works.
Bournemouth University Research Projects; the Society has funded a major piece
of research work, which involves a review of all current barbel research work,
and also some tank experiments into competition between barbel and other
species, both of which have now been published. The University is also carrying
out a scale reading study, using scales provided by the EA and BS members. This
study will be the largest of its kind, and will provide information on growth
rates and population structure for many UK rivers.
A database of all available barbel-related research is to be compiled over time
by the University.
More work is being carried out in partnership with Queen Mary College London on
barbel diet, which will involve further analysis of scales and this will use
complex techniques to establish the proportion of natural food, angler’s baits
and crayfish in barbel diet.
The analysis of the scales for the barbel diet research is being carried out in
early 2013, with a report expected in the autumn.
Growth rate analysis work on the Teme, Kennet and Hampshire Avon has already
been completed, and scales from barbel on the Trent and Severn are being
collected next season for further study.
The Society has committed funding over the next three years, 4K per year, in
support of a PhD project at Bournemouth University which builds on the work of
Karen Twine on the Great Ouse, but will involve work on more rivers, and will
look at current populations and the factors affecting barbel recruitment, as
well as more work on barbel diet and spawning habitat.
Barbel and gravels; the Society is helping to fund a PhD student at Southampton
University researching the effects of barbel foraging on gravel mobility and
structure.
River Cherwell Project; the Society has worked in partnership with the EA and
The Wild Trout Trust, providing funding to provide instream cover for fish on this
Thames tributary, in the form of large tree trunks, woody debris and live
hanging willows.
Hampshire Avon habitat works; using funds raised in conjunction with the Avon
Roach Project, the Society has removed redundant iron pilings from the river,
and has several thousand pounds earmarked for further habitat improvements.
Consent has been given to construct a fry bay for the benefit of coarse fish
fry of all species, and this will be completed in Summer 2013. Further work is
planned on the Avon, in partnership with the Avon Roach Project and the Wessex
Chalk Stream and Rivers Trust, all supported by the Environment Agency and
local fishing clubs.
River Lea stocking support; The Society is funding the stocking of 400 small
barbel into a sidestream of the River Lea, in order to monitor their spread and
survival and to help boost the local barbel population. The fish will be
stocked in Autumn 2013.
Barbel Society Handling Code; with help from film maker Hugh Miles, the Society
has produced a DVD to help educate anglers in the safe handling of barbel,
which will be provided free to clubs, tackle shops and other outlets, as well
as online and on Youtube.
All these activities require funding, which has been provided in the past by
the generosity of major tackle manufacturers, tackle shops, fishing clubs,
Barbel Society members and the angling community.
Pete Reading July 2013
Wednesday, 31 July 2013
Wednesday, 24 July 2013
Time to talk
Birdlife
It's been very hot up here today, so generally a lazy day apart from a little grocery shopping.
Anyway 7pm and we decide to sit outside and have a bottle of Cote du Rhone to see the evening out.
We get to talking ,as you do occasionally after 40 years of marriage, and start thinking of our anniversary holiday, but whilst we do that, we suddenly think about how quiet it is tonight!
Well apart from the Wednesday gathering of motor cyclists down at Willingham Woods car park and cafe. We can hear them whining around the local Wolds on their Japanese bikes, the relatively close by open roads are ideal to test the skills and speed of the biker boys, and occasionally through our village at well above 30mph speed limit!
The Lincolnshire road death total is about the same as last year up to the end of June!!
Bird sound is virtually non existent, apart from the dozen or so swifts acting like hooligans, and shrieking around the sky above us taking in the insect life.
No sign of swallows or martins, no song thrush, no blackbird, no sparrows chirping their tuneless tones in our bushes,almost nothing but the occasional monotonous sound of the solo wood pidgeon.
We're not certain if everybody is experiencing the lack of bird life we are, or if it's just personal to us, perhaps a result of our sparrowhawk pair.
We are aware that our feeder seeds are not being eaten at the usual rate, perhaps the birds are in in the fields?
We start thinking of the last time we saw the hoards of fledgeling sparrow around our pond, and the greenfinches,robins, dunnock, tits and wrens, we've not seen for sometime.
There are plenty of starling in the area, but even they are not doing their night flight as usual, and the pair of linnet visit our pond very quickly before twittering off with there dipping flight.
Something is not right.
I think we(I) may be falling into the anglers trap, no fish so it must be otter, so no birds it's the sparrowhawk...I don't know!
We shall have to see how the rest of the year progresses before jumping to any conclusions, it doesn't seem at all right at the moment though.
40 years of marriage !!
Our anniversary trip was talked about because our Russian visa's turned up this morning.
Our trip will take us to Helsinki where we shall spend 3 nights, we then travel along the coast by train to St Petersburg where we join our "Viking" river boat for a 13 night cruise to Moscow.
No rods will be taken.
I will report on that trip, but somehow I will need to try and fit in some fishing ,because before our cruise we have a weekend in Milton Keynes for a reunion with my ex Abbey National collegues, a trip to London with the ol'boys of the International Drinking Society, a week near Stirling, and a couple days at the Gunton Arms in Norfolk.
So far, late October to the end of the year are free of away trips.
Perhaps a trip to the Severn is in order for a try for the zander and barbel......we shall see.
It's been very hot up here today, so generally a lazy day apart from a little grocery shopping.
Anyway 7pm and we decide to sit outside and have a bottle of Cote du Rhone to see the evening out.
We get to talking ,as you do occasionally after 40 years of marriage, and start thinking of our anniversary holiday, but whilst we do that, we suddenly think about how quiet it is tonight!
Well apart from the Wednesday gathering of motor cyclists down at Willingham Woods car park and cafe. We can hear them whining around the local Wolds on their Japanese bikes, the relatively close by open roads are ideal to test the skills and speed of the biker boys, and occasionally through our village at well above 30mph speed limit!
The Lincolnshire road death total is about the same as last year up to the end of June!!
Bird sound is virtually non existent, apart from the dozen or so swifts acting like hooligans, and shrieking around the sky above us taking in the insect life.
No sign of swallows or martins, no song thrush, no blackbird, no sparrows chirping their tuneless tones in our bushes,almost nothing but the occasional monotonous sound of the solo wood pidgeon.
We're not certain if everybody is experiencing the lack of bird life we are, or if it's just personal to us, perhaps a result of our sparrowhawk pair.
We are aware that our feeder seeds are not being eaten at the usual rate, perhaps the birds are in in the fields?
We start thinking of the last time we saw the hoards of fledgeling sparrow around our pond, and the greenfinches,robins, dunnock, tits and wrens, we've not seen for sometime.
There are plenty of starling in the area, but even they are not doing their night flight as usual, and the pair of linnet visit our pond very quickly before twittering off with there dipping flight.
Something is not right.
I think we(I) may be falling into the anglers trap, no fish so it must be otter, so no birds it's the sparrowhawk...I don't know!
We shall have to see how the rest of the year progresses before jumping to any conclusions, it doesn't seem at all right at the moment though.
40 years of marriage !!
Our anniversary trip was talked about because our Russian visa's turned up this morning.
Our trip will take us to Helsinki where we shall spend 3 nights, we then travel along the coast by train to St Petersburg where we join our "Viking" river boat for a 13 night cruise to Moscow.
No rods will be taken.
I will report on that trip, but somehow I will need to try and fit in some fishing ,because before our cruise we have a weekend in Milton Keynes for a reunion with my ex Abbey National collegues, a trip to London with the ol'boys of the International Drinking Society, a week near Stirling, and a couple days at the Gunton Arms in Norfolk.
So far, late October to the end of the year are free of away trips.
Perhaps a trip to the Severn is in order for a try for the zander and barbel......we shall see.
Monday, 22 July 2013
What a plonker!!
Whitstable
When we visited the Hastings seafood and wine festival last September, I made a suggestion that perhaps we should visit next years Whitstable Oyster Festival just to see what it was all about, and being Essex folk the other side of the big river was never on our visiting list.
Anyway back in January I remembered my suggestion and booked this last Saturday and Sunday in the Marine Hotel Tankerton a nice double room overlooking the sea with a balcony. Just a brisk walk from the harbour where the festivities would be based.
Plonker me? Yer the bloody festival is next weekend the dates were confirmed in February after I booked!
So we have missed this
and this
When we visited the Hastings seafood and wine festival last September, I made a suggestion that perhaps we should visit next years Whitstable Oyster Festival just to see what it was all about, and being Essex folk the other side of the big river was never on our visiting list.
Anyway back in January I remembered my suggestion and booked this last Saturday and Sunday in the Marine Hotel Tankerton a nice double room overlooking the sea with a balcony. Just a brisk walk from the harbour where the festivities would be based.
Plonker me? Yer the bloody festival is next weekend the dates were confirmed in February after I booked!
So we have missed this
Saturday
The Landing of the Oysters, the Parade and what’ was going on in the harbour and at the Beer Festival.
Sunday
Today brings the epic Oyster Challenge and Mud Tug.
Anyway we enjoyed Whitstable, a very quaint town with quite a variation of architecture, for some reason veering towards Dutch design and a very good "High Street" with no real sign of the "brands"
The hotel and it's food and drink were very good, but Plonker number 2 spoiled part of the Saturday for me anyway,I tried another oyster and within 3 hours I was talking to God through the big white speaker.
I tried to eat the evening dinner, but it just wasn't working, so I left it and had an early night after having another conversation with God!
Prior to that from lunchtime I had a fair few pints of the local brew Sheperd Neame, I took a liking to their Goldings, and some of Harveys bitter down in the harbour.
Sunday morning,feeling better I trusted myself to a smoked haddock topped with a poached egg breakfast, that filled the space nicely.
We decided to go for a walk towards Herne Bay to get some air into our lungs and although she appeared to be ok, Pauline needed to because last night she drunk the whole bottle of Rioja, that was to go with our lamb cutlets... I hope the hotel dog enjoyed my chops!
Our walk only took us only as far as Tankerton Bay Yacht Club, where we watched the members trimming their sails, rested, turned around and headed back,making our minds up to find a nice place for lunch.
I have to say Herne Bay after Whitstable was a bit of a let down, no real character and certainly no obvious eating venues,apart from the chippy. A typical seafront a bit like Southend but not as good.
So we headed back along to coast to Seasalter, not much there, and then on to Faversham where we found ASK Italian and had our late lunch there. As usual very good and freshly cooked.
I do like the ASK offer, I was in on probably their first venture in Marble Arch when (AS)Kaye and his family opened up under the C&A store, and I liaised with them to ensure they settled into our building, acting as a foil from those in the Company who always wanted space for the store and looked for any reason to complain about my tenants!
I'm not certain the Kaye family still own the company, in fact I'm pretty certain they don't, but they've started up a new venture, which I'm sure will become equally successful.
So back to the Marine for a wash and brush up and some more tastings in the bar until late.
Breakfast, we both went for the full English, again very good quality local products, and then the 4 hour trip home.(62.4mpg)
Lessons learnt by this prize Plonker, that I must check that dates and bookings are lined up and that I must never, ever, ever, try another oyster!!
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