Return of the burbot: 'great lost fish' to be reintroduced to UK

Freshwater predatory cod species to make comeback after 50-year absence

Patrick Barkham

Fri 6 Mar 2020 12.46 GMTLast modified on Fri 6 Mar 2020 18.25 GMT

Forget dreams of wolves, bears or lynx – the next animal to be restored to the British countryside could be a river bottom-dwelling fish that resembles a giant tadpole.

The burbot, much-maligned for its unprepossessing appearance with a fleshy appendage dangling from its chin, was last sighted in British rivers in 1969.

A reward for spotting it remains unclaimed and now a costed reintroduction plan is being drawn up for Natural England, the government’s conservation watchdog.

“The chance to bring back burbot to our rivers is hugely exciting,” said Jonah Tosney, operations director of the Norfolk Rivers Trust, which is masterminding the reintroduction plan. “Unlike beavers, lynx and sea eagles, they haven’t been gone for long; only about 50 years. Anglers still remember catching them. We’re hopeful that recent work to improve water quality and to restore habitat has brought our rivers back to a good enough state to support England’s great lost fish.”

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The decline of the 'disgusting' burbot

When it comes to animals threatened with extinction, the cute and cuddly ones tend to get the most attention. But what about the ugly ones that go unnoticed when their numbers start to dwindle? Mary Colwell speaks up for the burbot.

"When you are furry, when you're lovable, you often fare better in people's interests than if you're bald and rather ugly," says Richard Sabin, curator of mammals at the Natural History Museum in London, referring to the popular appeal of animals such as pandas.

It was never going to bode well for the burbot then. The fish is "fat looking and a little bit flabby and soft" - a description offered by the museum's fish curator, James Maclaine.

He isn't the only one who doesn't swoon at its looks. "People have mixed feelings about the burbot," he says. "There's a 19th Century account by a man called Pennant who calls it 'a very delicate fish for the table, though of disgusting appearance when alive'."

It is true that burbot are… characterful. They are long and sinuous, commonly growing to more than a metre in length, but can get much larger. They look very much like eels - they are often called eelpout - and when caught, will wrap themselves around the angler's arms and legs.

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Warmth gives ugly invasive fish brief reprieve from anglers

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Warm weather has helped grant a reprieve this year to a homely, eel-like and especially slimy invasive fish pursued by anglers as they compete for big money in two ice-fishing tournaments on the Wyoming-Utah line.

The goal of both annual events is to remove burbot (pronounced BUR'-but) from Flaming Gorge Reservoir.

Burbot are known for being best caught in frigid weather using smelly bait, for wrapping their slippery bodies around fishermen's arms — and for being delicious. Some call them the "poor man's lobster."

But wind and highs in the 50s have kept the reservoir mostly ice-free lately. Much of the remaining ice near shore is getting dicey to walk on.

"It's still about 6 inches thick, but we don't recommend going out on it now," said Les Tanner, owner of the Buckboard Marina and host of the Burbot Classic tournament.

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