Its favoured habitats are the so-called barbel zones in fast-flowing rivers with gravel or stone bottoms, although it regularly occurs in slower rivers and has been successfully stocked in stillwaters. Barbel are very abundant in some rivers, often seen in large shoals on rivers such as the Wye.

Where do barbel fish live?

Barbels are group of small carp-like freshwater fish, almost all of the genus Barbus. They are usually found in gravel and rocky-bottomed slow-flowing waters with high dissolved oxygen content.

What does the barbel fish eat?

The barbel's natural diet is mainly made up of crustaceans, insect larvae and molluscs, which they unearth from the riverbed. They are carnivorous and are known to feed on minnows, frogs, crayfish, fish fry and snails.