WHY ARE THEY GROWING SO QUICKLY?

We asked respected fish scientist and big fish angler Dr Paul Garner to explain why the Trent barbel might be showing such extraordinary growth rates. He said: “A number of factors may have contributed to the increases, the first being the sheer amount of natural food available to the fish. The Trent is a vast waterway that is extremely rich in invertebrates for the barbel to feast on.

“Secondly, from below Nottingham up to Newark you’ll find a number of weirs on the river which are providing warm, oxygenated water for the barbel to thrive in. The Trent is also deep with not a particularly fast flow, meaning that the barbel don’t have to swim against the current all the time, so can put on a lot of weight in a relatively short period of time.”