An Enforced Closed Season
If you're partial to a bit of river angling, then you're only all too familiar with The Close Season.
Traditionally, coarse angling in England on rivers (and some stillwaters and canals) was subject to a coarse fish close season between 15 March and 15 June, inclusive. It was maintained to protect coarse fish stocks from additional angling pressure in the period around their typical spawning period. However, prohibiting angling on rivers also has other effects, including the reduction of the social and economic benefits from angling.
The close season has been maintained on a precautionary basis – revoking or changing it would entail running a number of risks, most importantly that to maintenance of fish stocks. England Fisheries Group established a study group, comprising representatives from the Angling Trust, Institute of Fisheries Management and the Environment Agency, to examine the available evidence on the effects of the coarse fish close season in England, particularly on rivers, and whether collecting additional evidence to increase our understanding of likely effects of changes to the close season on rivers was possible.
In 1995 stillwater fisheries were deregulated with regards to the close season (the close season was retained on stillwater SSSIs where year-round angling could affect designated features). The decision was not based on any specific study, but followed consultation with angling, fisheries and other interests. According to the Environment Agency the
rationale was twofold:
• Most stillwaters are discrete water bodies in single ownership; this enables the owner to manage the fish stocks and to impose whatever restrictions are felt to be needed, including non-statutory close seasons.
• The fact that the close season had been dispensed with on many stillwaters without any apparent detriment to those fisheries, presented strong evidence in favour of removing it.
Within many closed systems, the fish populations are artificially supplemented by stocking and therefore do not rely on natural recruitment. Furthermore, these closed systems are less subject to influences from the
wider catchment, and, more importantly, management of such systems would have a minimal impact on other stakeholders.
Then, in 2000, the close season was lifted on the canals. This lifting of The Close Season was based on a study by The British Trust for Ornithology.
So, in short, we've been able to angle all year round, apart from the traditional closed season on the river systems of the UK.
However, due to Covid-19 we have seen a return, nationwide, to pre 1995. No one has been able to wet a line. We're back to a Close Season.
Now, there are many reasons for the lifting of the Close Season in some areas, but keeping it for others. One of which would be the spawning fish.
Only time will tell, and if the Angling Trust can do their thing, we may be able to get out fishing by around the first week or two of May. But will the enforced time off have done our fisheries good?
We've written previously about the effects of global warming and rising temperatures. Based on this theory the spawning time of the fish gets earlier and earlier. The weather in April has been pretty good so far and a number of venues have seen spawning fish. Surely giving the fish time to themselves, after the harshness of winter to spawn can only be a good thing?
Adding to this, has the lack of angling pressure may only improve your angling experience when you get back on the bank. Whether it's a commercial or natural venue. On commercial venues it may give the stock time to spread around the pond more, getting rid of the traditional flyers. It will no doubt make them want a bit of grub, and have probably improved their condition. On your natural venues it's given you the chance to find the fish, find new areas and scope them out. And nothing is stopping you pre baiting for opening day. Apart from the lockdown, of course!
But then, on the other side of the coin, there's the angling trade. It's struggling, there's no hiding that. And then having the close season back may only make things worse. No one buying bait, tackle and day tickets for weeks on end.
Could there be a happy medium though? The traditional close season runs from March through to June. With all of April and May excluded from our angling calender, it's a long time. There's no doubt if you speak to the angling trade and fishery owners during this enforced down time it's been tough. But there has been obvious external factors affecting the trade and angling in general.
Therefore, could there be a way of reintroducing a close season? To give our beloved quarry a chance to get their spawning out of the way and in turn cause them less stress when doing so. But then condense it somewhat to cater for the angling trade? How would we do this? Could we change the date of a close season? Do we just keep fishing until the fish start to spawn? Then give it a month off?
If you look back at the start of this blog and note the dates when the close season was lifted, do they correspond with the downturn of your favourite venues ever since? We can think of a number of canals, for example, that are nowhere near as prolific as they were. The same goes for a number of natural stillwaters. We are all aware of the large shoals of roach and bream that lived in the canal system. Or tench and crucians that lives in our ponds, and the old boys in the club saying "it's not what it used to be".
But there are a whole heap of reasons for this. Additional angling pressure may just be one.
This is not a campaign to get the close season reintroduced. It's more some thinking out loud, a topic of discussion, if you will. There's no doubt this enforced shut down has been an issue for everyone, including us. At the end of the day, although Dave is a renowned River angler, he has also made a quantity of big money finals and could easily be guiding and coaching on commercial venues now. Or guiding for a Wye salmon.
These are strange times. This lockdown is obviously for health reasons above all else. But it may give us an opportunity to understand how a close season, and hopefully a shorter than normal one, may or may not benefit our favourite fishing spots.