bream

[daytimedave]

whilst floater fishing for carp today i had an unusual bream
come in to me swim,all on its own it had clumps of tan
coloured patches over its body,from a distance it looked like
a koi,however on close inspection it had these clumps of
brown stuff on it,......
the fish seemed lively,,just wondered if any of you had
any ideas on what it might be
cheers
dtd

[CarponlineEditor]

Hiya dave / Alan,

These fish are what are commonly known as 'Sleepers'. They are really late wakers after the winter hybernation period.

No-one knows why these fish sleep for so long but for some reason they do. When they do eventually awaken they are covered with a peculiar type of water moss and lichen which looks as you mentioned so cleverly in your post.

After a while of swimming around this water moss / lichen will start to fall off these fish a bit like the furry stuff does off deers antlers and they will soon look in pristine condition again and will be fighting fit feeding mode.

These fish are mostly sterile which is just as well really as they awaken from their long sleep after the others have finished spawning so they would be far to late anyway.

Oh and if you believe that lot then you are as daft as the other bloke who believed me LOL

Andy

[daytimedave]

bl**dy h*ll,
thats a long KIPP!!
lol
cheers dr dixon

dtd.....................al

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by CarponlineEditor on 25/07/01 08:17 PM (server time).</FONT></P>

[Rivercarper]

I wake up like that most mornings.

[BuggedByTench]

Maybe it is just a little hung over!!!
Christ knows that's how my tongue looks when I awaken from the night before, especially after the Kebab with chillie sauce which does seem so appeal after a few Stella's.

[MikeLyddon053698]

Dave, it sounds to me as if they have contracted a fungal infection known as 'saprolegnia'. If I remember correctly, when I used to be a Trout farmer, some of our stock used to suffer from this regularly. It can be quite contageous to other fish & could be worth informing Ian or Viv about it.
Mike.

[daytimedave]

not an rmc water mike
il let the owners know,cheers ,it looked odd
like a buffalo hide ,
cheers
dtd

p.s andy,,,..........you dissapoint me........lol