Hogsmill Electrofishing
Over the last two days members of the Environment Agency have been undertaking fish surveys at four locations along the Hogsmill. This is from Hogsmill Lane (just off Villiers Road) to Oakland Way-Chamber Mead KT19 upstream, just across the borough boundary. This type of survey is usually undertaken by boat - although backpacks were used in the shallows upstream at Ewell. Circular electrofishing 'anodes' attract the fish, which swim towards the the charged equipment, where they are stunned but not harmed. They are then decanted to large buckets for further examination or 'processing'. During the initial survey at Elmbridge Meadows, a surprising catch of ~100 fish was made in the first of three runs. This is virtually one fish every metre of the ~90m netted area and included: chub, dace, roach, stone loach, gudgeon, stickleback, minnow, bullhead and an eel. At Worcester Park Road-Tolworth A240 a similar number of fish were caught. By far th...