Weird freshwater fish, Bempton pond, E Yorkshire, England (1 Viewer)

[Brett Richards]

This has completely thrown me. I wondered for a while if it were some sort of terrapin (but a big one) until I saw the dorsal fin. It is a sizeable fish, I would say probably 60 cm in length. It has a long, slim neck and a slim, pointed head with a pale lower jaw, then a strange hump , with a short dorsal fin behind the hump. It's like nothing I've ever seen before.

Thoughts welcome.

Brett

 

[Andy Adcock]

Those large scales might point to a Carp sp.

 

[dantheman]

Like Mirror Carp? There's some pretty large and ugly examples here

mirror carp - Google Search

 

[Brett Richards]

Those large scales might point to a Carp sp.

Not a Common (short dorsal fin set well back) or Crucian Carp though; apart from anything else, what the hell is that long slim neck and head all about?
Brett

 

[Andy Adcock]

Not a Common (short dorsal fin set well back) or Crucian Carp though; apart from anything else, what the hell is that long slim neck and head all about?
Brett

Hard to say when it's not visible in the shots.

 

[Brett Richards]

Hard to say when it's not visible in the shots.

4th large image down. That's the head and neck to the left.

 

[Andy Adcock]

I think it's probably, not far off this Common Carp?

 

[Brett Richards]

I think it's probably, not far off this Common Carp?

View attachment 1591890

Looks nothing like that to me. Carp seemed the obvious choice at first, but I just can't see it.

 

[Andy Lakin]

Definitely not a bog standard example of any of the common species. The hump backed appearance is baffling!

 

[Andy Adcock]

Couldn't be, could it!?

arapaima - Yahoo Image Search results

Wouldn't be surprised if it's a large, former, pet which has been dumped?

 

[Brett Richards]

Couldn't be, could it!?

arapaima - Yahoo Image Search results

Wouldn't be surprised if it's a large, former, pet which has been dumped?

Doesn't look right, and if what I think is the dorsal fin really is the dorsal fin then definitely not. I think a dumped pet is a possibility though.

 

[Andy Adcock]

I'll be honest Brett, I'm struggling to get any sense of the overall shape of the thing.

Looks to be in shallow water, can you get someone to net it?

 

[tonyfenn]

Bog standard mirror carp, what you are seeing is the 'humped back' that sometimes appears on some fish. There is a strain called 'Italian' where the fish is almost football shape

 

[Brett Richards]

Bog standard mirror carp, what you are seeing is the 'humped back' that sometimes appears on some fish. There is a strain called 'Italian' where the fish is almost football shape

I can't see how It's a bog standard anything. If it is swimming in a normal upright position, which I believe it is, then in front of the hump is a long thin neck (if fish can be said to have a neck) and then a slim pointed head. Look at the 4th large image down. The head is to the left. I have watched it for many minutes. I could be misinterpreting things, but I really can't see how. In the 5th image down, where the head is to the right, you can see a pale lower jaw. I will try and get some video of it this afternoon.

 

[Allen]

Maybe some kind of normal fish (eel?) with a huge tumour?

 

[Brett Richards]

Maybe some kind of normal fish (eel?) with a huge tumour?

Dorsal fin wrong for an eel, but a good suggestion; I wonder if it has some sort of horrible deformity.

 

[angusmcoatup]

I’ve a distant memory of a deformed carp left on the bank of a Salford reservoir (Blackleach) which had a longish neck/head and humped back. It was the site of a demolished chemical factory which an angling mate reckoned accounted for the poor quality of fish caught there. There’s a few malformed looking carp on Google.

 

[Brett Richards]

Some horrible looking fish there, but nothing like the Bempton fish.

 

[Brett Richards]

Some horrible looking fish there, but nothing like the Bempton fish.

It seems some people just aren't seeing what I see. In the attached image, I have outlined the head end in red to the right of the hump, and marked in red along the top of the folded down dorsal fin to the left of the hump. The water is very murky but I have outlined things as best I can. This is how it constantly appears broadside on. If this is a bog standard anything I'll eat my hat (I have a couple of spares just in case).

 

[THE_FERN]

Carp, just like the ones introduced to my local park