A Biodiversity Information System for Cheshire, Halton, Warrington & Wirral

having had another look, and noticing that what looks like the pectoral fin is fairly far forward,I think its a Gudgeon, the clincher would be two barbules (young barbel have four).

Thanks gents. I've had a look at some photos of the gudgeon and I'm happy to record it is as that. The only question I've got now is whether it matters if the water is running or not. Are freshwater fish specific to running or standing water? These fish were found in a fishing pond on the Zoo grounds.

Hi Tom, in answer to your question different species have different preferences, but Gudgeon are common in Stillwaters and canals, they are usually in fairly largish shoals and feed near the bottom.
The thing with Coarse fish is that they can turn up in a lot of different places - either through translocation via birds as eggs/fry, or deliberately by Anglers - I once caught a Barbel in 'Burgess' pit in Widnes (now under a housing estate!)- which was basically a place where people dumped rubbish and dead dogs - the Barbel really needs a fast flowing, clear riverine system, how the poor begger ended up in Widnes is anybodys guess!!