2007 Members Newsletter
Welcome to the seventh Bainton Fisheries Newsletter, which is designed to keep you informed about the Fishery, in terms of news during the last season, future events and issues.
Membership 2006 – 2007
There continues to be significant demand for permits on the complex. New members will only be accepted in place of existing members who do not renew by the deadline. Membership numbers will be fixed again for the coming season. Operating profits have been spent on fish stocking, staff, (bailiff and contract labour), swim building materials, a few tools and admin costs (e.g. Stamps/Printing etc).
Stockings News
In 2006 one stocking was managed. As agreed at the 2006 members meeting supplies of Bream and/or Tench were to be sought for stocking for pleasure anglers. To summarise fish purchased during 2006 – 2007 :-
· In July 2006, 29 Bream were stocked into the L Shape Pit. These fish were uncaught fish having been removed from Abbey Park Boating Pool in Leicester .
If members know of lake owners who would be interested in selling fish to Bainton Fisheries then please pass their details to me.
Fishery Maintenance and Development
Two working parties were held in 2006; Swims were repaired and opended up on the L Shape lake using mainly railway sleepers. However attendance on the second working party was rather disappointing limiting the amount of work that could be undertaken.
Working party dates
This year there will be working parties as follows:-
Sunday 22nd April from 9am – Big Pit, general repair of wave eroded swims along East bank and erection of barbed wire fence along main road. Useful to bring waders, shovels, bow saws, thick gloves, hammers, wheel barrows. Park inside main gate and walk down please.
Sunday 20th May from 9am – Orchid Pit, converting overgrown swims along the South Bank to allow pleasure angling all year. Please bring lump hammers, cordless drill and screw driver bits, bow saws, chest waders as this will probably involve erecting scaffold and laying timber on platforms. Plus all the usual gardening tools. Weed will also be transferred from the Orchid to the L Shape, so weed rakes would also be useful.
In terms of arranging a plan of action for the working party days I would be grateful if members could either e-mail or ring me before hand to say they are coming. This will enable me to plan the tasks ahead for the day.
Feedback from Members Meeting
The seventh members’ meeting was held at the Millstone Pub, Barnack on 20th April 2007. This had a very good turn out with about 60 members which was excellent. The theme to many of the issues raised for discussion at the meeting seemed to centre on ensuring security of the site, considerate behaviour to anglers and fish conservation.
The main items discussed: –
· Visitors to anglers – it was agreed that members must take responsibility for visitors to ensure that they abide by the fishery rules. Members should meet visitors at the gate, let them in and escort them on and off the site, relocking the gate. The car of a visitor should be parked displaying a note in the window as to the member they are visiting, stating the members name and permit number.
· The issue of not having a photo ID on the permit was discussed and the various pro’s and cons aired. In the end it was decided that the risk of anglers lending a non member a permit to fish were possible but validating unknown anglers with secondary ID such as a rod license should be tried first.
· The barded wire fence along the main road of the big pit had been trampled down in a few places by people and it was agreed that a working party would address this issue.
· Concern was also raised about some damage being caused to fish by careless handling on the bank. It was agreed that although unhooking mats were mandatory, that the rules should be amended to ensure that anglers targeting Pike, Carp or Catfish must have a large unhooking mat with a retention flap. Anglers should also take care to ensure that potentially sharp object like rings and watch straps are removed before holding fishing as they can remove scales.
· It was agreed that the Environment Agency Byelaw that “Any person who leaves a rod and line with its bait or hook in the water unattended or so that the person shall be unable at any time to take or exercise sufficient control over said rod and line shall be guilty of an offence” would be actively enforced on the fishery as too many rods were being left unattended by anglers.
· The number or anglers targeting the New Pit was discussed, rather than limit the number of anglers, it was decided that only two rods would be permitted from 1st April until 30th September. From 1st October until 31st March, the limit would be three rods for this pit only. This rule would commence 16th June 2007.
· Communication between anglers was discussed, it was agreed that the photo gallery was being well used and that a bulletin board would be added to the web site. This would be moderated and only members would be allowed to join.
· The events causing the fish kill on the L shape was discussed and a recent report from the environment agency confirmed that with the exception of the Greater Pond Snail, the invertebrate food chain was very healthy and oxygen levels were normal. It was agreed that the working party on the orchid would transfer large quantities of weed from the Orchid to attempt to transfer snails and their eggs but also to try and establish more weed growth in the L Shape. This weed would attempt act as a buffer against future dissolved oxygen level crashes.
· With regards to restocking, fish would be acquired during the spring to hopefully ensure that the L Shape becomes a viable angling proposition by June 16th 2007. Schemes were well under way to source fish during April and May and members may be required to help on netting duties if required. The pit would be restored to a mixed fishery.
· The issue of allowing keepnets for tench for match angling was discussed, but it was agreed that if anglers were concerned about allowing a returning fish to disturb their swim, they should release it further along the bank.
· The non attendance of anglers at working parties was discussed, members felt that an approach utilised by other angling clubs should be established. Therefore it was agreed that a working party levy of £10 would be added to all permits, this levy would be returned to any angler should they attend a working party in the following year. Anglers due to weekend commitments who cannot attend and who still want to take part in fishery maintenance should contact the bailiff or fishery owner for a job. The following years application would offer the £10 back as a discount on next years ticket, or if the angler wishes to leave the fishery, will be returned upon receipt of gate key. Anglers over 65 years or with a disability would be exempt from the working party levy and their attendance at working parties is at their discretion.
· The deadline for renewal will be to ensure that all applications are received no later that Tuesday 15th May 2007 to ensure that membership does not lapse, thereafter; existing members will have to compete with new applications.
· The vetting of new members was also discussed; it was felt that existing members should act as a referee for new members to the fishery, thus ensuring that their good character and positive attitude towards conservation would be validated. It was agreed that as part of the renewals pack existing members would receive a new member application form. This would allow for the new member from to be returned in the SAE supplied along with the existing members own renewal. Applications would be prioritised in the following order. 1st Existing members, 2nd New members refereed by an exiting member, 3rd New members applying after May 15th 2007 without a referee. Members should not recommend any angler who they have concerns over as it will reflect upon their own membership.
· The costs of running the fishery will increase by 5% during 2007/8 therefore permit cost will need to increase to reflect this. In addition all fishing permits will include a refundable £10.00 levy to encourage members to attend working parties.
Non-fishing Permit: – £15.50
Dawn to Dusk Permit: – £57.50 + £10.00 levy
24-Hour Permit: – £110.00 + £10 levy
Keys will remain at £6.00.
A Note from the Bird Ringer!!
Those of you who’ve seen me emerging from the reedbeds looking pretty bedraggled at some unearthly hour of the morning may well have worked out that I’m the bloke who traps and rings wild birds at Bainton. I often think I’m the only one about as it’s usually dark when I arrive but most days, as dawn breaks I spot a few hardy fishermen also enjoying that magical time of the early morning. And in spring, when the dawn chorus is at its very best, what a treat it is. I know you’d probably prefer to be playing with some wonderful fish but it is worth pausing and thinking that a huge number of these songsters have travelled many thousands of miles to serenade us. The very best of these is of course the Nightingale and Bainton is one of the very best sites to hear this superb bird. In 2006 I caught 20 of these rather drab, nondescript birds (apart from their rufous tail) and they’re not often seen but you can’t mistake the fabulous rich song as it blasts out. Contrary to popular belief, they don’t just sing at night so listen out for them in May as they’ll keep going most of the day. And in May last year a really special one paid a visit to Bainton. This particular bird had been ringed in Tipperne, Egvad , Denmark in May 2002 and was caught by me at Bainton in June 2003. What made it special then was that it was the first ever Danish ringed Nightingale to be recovered anywhere in the world and was only the 3rd ever foreign ringed Nightingale to be recovered in Britain . Imagine my surprise then when he re-appeared again in May 2006! It would be really great if he turned up again this year.
Another very special bird for the site is the Reed Warbler and a bird ringed at Bainton way back in 1988 is the oldest known Reed Warbler in Europe , having been re-trapped here again on many occasions and finally in 2001. Incidentally, one year he defected to Rutland Water and was caught by the ringing team there but he finally realised that Bainton had much more to offer and remained faithful to the site for many years. Considering these birds spend their winter in countries such as Senegal , Nigeria , Botswana and Namibia he must have put many thousands of miles on the clock over the years. Weighing in at about 11 grammes, it makes you think. Some motor!
Bainton is one of around 120 sites in Britain where birds are trapped under the Constant Effort Site (CES) programme. This is a long running scientific study of bird populations, breeding success rates and survival rates and is run by The British Trust for Ornithology. Bainton, along with nearby Ferry Meadows is one of the longest running sites and the data collected from both places has made a significant contribution to our understanding of how our avian populations are faring. 2006 was a good year for most species – although Sedge Warblers seem to be in decline – and almost 1400 birds were trapped and processed here.
Best wishes to you all for a successful fishing season in 2007 and if you see me around – and haven’t got a bite to deal with – come over for look at what I’m doing. You’ll be most welcome.
Chris Hughes
And Finally
Without all your support and effort running this fishery would be an impossible task. Please think as it as much as yours as mine. Hopefully you get out more from it than just a days fishing, I hope you feel included and consulted and feel that you are making a contribution into shaping the ways things develop. Remember the Bainton Philosophy is for conservation minded anglers who care about the environment they fish in.
Ian Wakeford