Hundreds of new fish added to lakes for anglers to catch in Milton Keynes

Plenty of fish will keep the underwater ecosystems healthy while adding to the appeal for anglers, says the Parks Trust.

The tench ranged from 150 to 180mm in length (around 100 to 150 grammes in weight) and travelled in oxygenated tanks from a specialist supplier's premises to their new homes.

They joined a similar number added 18 months ago and they are all capable of growing into whoppers.

According to Milton Keynes Angling Association (MKAA), a schoolboy fishing Caldecotte Lake with his dad two years ago caught a tench weighing 5 kilo – just over 11 pounds.

MKAA's Trevor Johnson said: "Working on such projects with the Trust evidences our joint desire to improve and maintain, where possible, fish stocks in the parks."

The Parks Trust's work in maintaining stocks and in establishing new populations in freshly created waters includes 'growing on' small fish in designated small lakes and ponds in readiness for the the day they move to other local waters.

Currently that work is being combined with supporting a native species – the tench (tinca tinca) – which, nationally, is no longer as common as it used to be.

As part of the same partnership operation other tench, some up to a kilo in weight, have been added by Milton Keynes Angling Association to Trust waters open to angling.

Trust Operations and Landscape director Rob Riekie said: "It makes sense that if we are to rear our own fish, that it should be a valued native or 'heritage' species – just as we use native species when seeding wild flower meadows.

“It also made sense that we should work together with MKAA, a fishing-rights tenant, tapping into their experience of sourcing quality fish, and to eliminate transport costs by sharing a delivery run."

Both the Parks Trust and MKAA are urging people not to be tempted to add unwanted fish from your pond or aquarium to open waters.

“However healthy they may look, they can carry diseases which spread and wipe out entire stocks, as happened at Ashlands three years back,” said a spokesman.

Find out more here about fishing in the parks.