The Upper River Ouse
Perch Perca Fluviatilis An aggressive predatory fish, with a spiny dorsal fin, and distinctive black vertical stripes on an olive green/yellow body
The perch must be one of the most familiar and common catches to the English angler. It is distributed throughout the UK, from southern England up to Scotland, and although small perch are very numerous, on many lakes and rivers, the larger specimens are a much rarer sight, mainly due to the ravages of the perch disease of the 1960's. However in recent years the species has been making a comeback.
The Perch Fishers are an angling organisation dedicated to the pursuit, catching, and preservation of one of Englands neglected species.
Anyone
who is a regular devotee of the angling press, would have probably
noticed that big perch have been getting more common in recent
years. Also reports of some phenomenal individual catches of big
perch from a certain part of the Upper Great Ouse, have increased
the spotlight on this ‘neglected species’, and it
would appear that big perch throughout the UK are definitely making
a comeback.
However, despite the increase in very big perch
being publicised in recent year, it is worth while pointing out
that a very big perch, certainly one over 4lb+, is a very rare
fish indeed, and is an exceptional capture, even by today's standards.
Fish of this size are not often seen, let alone caught, and are
very impressive looking fish, compared to the much smaller sized
perch we are used to seeing. Even a 3lb+ perch is a big fish,
and few people have caught fish of even this size.
Although big perch are now becoming more common
these days, the species has been the unfortunate victim of the
destructive perch disease of the 1960s. This terrible disease
virtually wiped out all of the large perch which existed in the
UK, some forty years ago, and from the 1970s onwards big perch
became almost unheard of. During the twenty years that followed,
noted big perch waters, of the time, soon went full circle and
the big perch in these waters, soon disappeared.
In the early eighties a small lake in Kent,
called Furnace Pond, proved to be the exception, and produced
an incredible number of huge perch, including the former British
record fish of 5lb 9oz, caught by John Shaylor. Since then the
perch has begun to make a come back, and the last ten years has
seen an increase in the number of very big fish advertised in
the angling press. It would appear that the demise of the perch
is a thing of the past and at last this fish is now a viable proposition
as a serious target for the specimen angler.
One venue that has always been famous for big
perch is the Upper Great Ouse, in Buckinghamshire, and I have
read much about the exploits of anglers such as Dick Walker, and
Tony Miles, on this river, and big perch have always been a feature,
when these people have written about fishing on the Upper River
Ouse near Beachampton.
Today, certain parts of this river still hold
perch to impressive sizes, and recent captures have included fish
up to 5lbs in weight!! There was much talk, recently amongst anglers
in the know, that the River Ouse would produce a new British record
perch. However, it would appear, that the present river Ouse fish
will not quite grow to a size that will eclipse the current British
record.
Despite this, the general size of the perch
on 'certain stretches' of the Upper River Ouse, are very impressive.
A 3lb+ perch can be a realistic target, for any angler, who is
fishing the right area, and there is always the outside chance
of a really huge fish of 4lb+.
