Man goes fishing in the UK and catches creature that really shouldn't be here

A man was gobsmacked after going fishing for the day and catching a large fish that "should not be in the UK" recently. Fishing is not always easy, particularly if you try out new waters or the weather is unpredictable. So when you feel that pinch on your hook and line and manage to catch one, it can be exhilarating - and even more so if the fish is rarely sighted.

One animal-lover, James Cooke, was gobsmacked recently after finding and catching a rare fish in UK waters. James has built a name for himself online as Wildlife With Cookie - and shares his adventures while searching for rare animals around the world.

Recently, he was enjoying a spot of fishing in Edinburgh, Scotland with his dad. After 30 hours and five attempts, the pair managed to catch a zander. "A non-native predator that can be found right here in UK waters," James said. "He's a lovely fish," he added after catching it.

"Look at the big eye on it, what a predator," his dad said in a video James shared online. James said it is an animal "that should not be in the UK".

The zander is a non-native fish that has predatory feeding behaviour similar to a pike. The fish were first introduced in the 1870s at Woburn Abbey and they negatively impact the native canal ecology.

The UK Canal and River Trust states: "Growing to a large size, they're formidable predators who are particularly harmful to narrow, shallow and turbid waterways - the likes of which largely make up our canal network. They may be less impactful in clearer water conditions."

James described them as "masterful hunters and specialise in dark, murky water which makes canals a hot spot to find them". Plus, Zander are often active at night and will lie up in shady areas near the lake, river or canal bed during daylight.

Zanders typically weigh between 400g and 3kG, plus are approximately 120cm long. The fish are often a green-brown colour with dark vertical markings, similar to the perch, and a cream or white belly. They feed on small fish like roach, bullhead and gudgeon.

In the comments of the video James shared, one said: "Nice that you caught one, we have a decent amount of them in Finland and they are quite tricky to catch as they are good at hiding and stalk their prey for quite some time. Catching one is also really rewarding as thy put up quite a fight and taste real good."

"That's really cool," commented another. "Well done pal, not an easy catch by any means," insisted another. "It's a beautiful fish," wrote one other.

A number of people asked if the fish was returned to the water or not, however you cannot return zander fish to UK waters once they have been caught.

The Canal and River Trust, along with the Environment Agency and Natural England, a statement reads: "Whilst some permits issued do allow the keeping of zander (for example in fully enclosed still waters), permits on canals and other online waters usually require the permit holder to remove zander from their fishery.

"This is to prevent zander from spreading into new catchments. Given that river fisheries are in multiple ownership and fish are free to swim between them, the Environment Agency does not issue permits to river fishery owners to keep zander."