Worksop: Parasite linked to mass fish deaths at lake

Hundreds of fishes "including bream and roach" were found at the lake

A parasite is thought to have led to the deaths of hundreds of fishes in a lake in Nottinghamshire.

The Environment Agency found 300 to 500 dead fishes at Langold Lake near Worksop following reports of "fish in distress" on Thursday.

Lab tests later confirmed white-spot, which is caused by a parasite, had spread and was the likely cause of the deaths.

Fishing at the lake has been temporarily ceased.

White-spot can lead to "rapid loss of condition" and death in heavily infected fish, according to the Environment Agency.

A lab test found a sample from the lake had a "high infestation level" of the disease, the Environment Agency said

Matt Pettitt, the director at Embryo Angling, the organisation that runs fishing activities on the the lake, said although the disease is "not uncommon", the outbreak was "a blow" to the community.

"Langold is one of our family fishing venues. We like to get children and local people into fishing, so it's upsetting as we don't yet know how this will affect fishing going forward," he said.

Embryo Angling said it would allow fishing to resume when it was "confident that normality had returned".