Minnow - Phoxinus phoxinus

9 to 10cm. Variable colouring, greenish-brown with dark bars or silvery tinged with green and a yellow line along the sides. Males turn reddish beneath in the breeding season.

Favours clear flowing water with sandy or gravelly beds. Sometimes also in lakes.

All year. More visible in warmer months.

Widespread and common in Britain

Common in Leicestershire and Rutland. Widely distributed in rivers and streams, including the Soar, eastern and western Sence, Me ase/Gilwiskaw Brook, Rothley Brook and smaller watercourses such as the Sibson Brook and Langton Brook.