Barbel Society Chairman, Steve Pope, has called on anglers to stop fishing for barbel in the current heatwave to help protect fish stocks.
He told Angling Times:
“In temperatures like these, you really shouldn’t fish for barbel.
"I’ve cancelled my guiding days, which isn’t ideal, but the fish have to come first.
"When the water gets over 20 degrees, dissolved oxygen drops off the scale, and at the moment some of our rivers are 22 degrees!
"Even if you think a fish you’ve landed has swam off alright, it’s so hard to be sure they are in such temperatures, so it’s best to leave them alone.
"There’s rain forecast next week, so hopefully by then things will be safer.”
"Stop fishing for barbel in heatwave" says Steve Pope