Helping The Whiskered Fish

Herts’ rivers are home to amazing wildlife that is largely hidden to us. David Johnson, Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust’s living rivers offier, outlines the life of a special fish at the centre of a conservation project

- David Johnson

The barbel is a species of freshwater fish, whose name derives from barba, the Latin root for beard. It’s easy to see why – the fish has two pairs of ‘barbels’ – large whisker-like appendages around the jaw. These are touch and taste sensitive and used for finding invertebrates in the gravel bed of rivers. The barbel is a large species, usually up to 3kg but known to reach weights of 8.5kg. They are characterised by a large, broad head and an underslung mouth with thick lips, and of course, its four whiskers.

Barbel are found in the lower reaches of medium and large gravel-bottomed rivers and require clean, fast-flowing waters to survive. Hertfordshire’s river Lea is the perfect habitat. To help them thrive in these conditions, barbel have developed adaptations including a streamlined torpedo shaped body and strong powerful muscles that help them swim against the flow.