Dace

Dace and our canals

The distinctive, silvery colour of dace means that they’re often visible gathering in large shoals, searching for insects and other small invertebrates in rivers and streams. They don’t grow particularly big, and this makes them a favourite prey of larger fish, such as pike.

How to identify a dace

Dace are small silvery fish living in the lower reaches of rivers. Their eyes are yellowish with small dark spots in the iris.

Although sometimes confused for the roach or chub, they’re smaller and more slender with duller fins. Chub also tend to have a wider mouth shape and curved dorsal and pelvic fins.

Lifecycle of a dace

Dace spawn in April when the females swim upstream to mate with males in shallow streams on sandy or stony bottoms. During this season, males have spawning tubercles over their whole body.

The eggs are large, and they can produce up to 9,500, depositing them at the bottom. Adults mature at three or four years old.

Where to find a dace

Dace largely live in river habitats and are present in most rivers in England and Wales, except for those in the far west and south-west. They’re as at home in large, powerful rivers as they are in tiny, overgrown streams. Dace are freshwater fish, but they can be found in brackish waters too.

They’re also found in many canals, particularly those connected with rivers. They’re especially common in the Llangollen Canal, as well as the Kennet & Avon and Oxford Canals.

How to catch a dace

Dace are normally one of the first fish to show up when anglers are on the bank. They mainly feed on the river bed but will also come to the surface to catch flies and midges during hatching.

They’re greedy fish and can be caught most often on maggots and bread punch. Light float tactics and small hooks (size 20), along with regular feeding, will attract their attention.

Other fish species to look out for