Tidal rivers cats

[Daygo51]

Hi all, would be interested in peoples thoughts on this?
I regularly fish a southern river, and over the last 10 years more and more cats have shown up on the tidal stretch, from kittens to 70+.
Weird thing is the non tidal doesn’t seem to have ever produced a single cat (I may be wrong, but have never seen a pic, or heard of a capture).
The non tidal and tidal can connect through flooding, and the carp have moved at times between the sections.
Just wondered if anyone knew the reason the cats would prosper in the tidal but not the non tidal?

[Ratty46]

Hi all, would be interested in peoples thoughts on this?
I regularly fish a southern river, and over the last 10 years more and more cats have shown up on the tidal stretch, from kittens to 70+.
Weird thing is the non tidal doesn’t seem to have ever produced a single cat (I may be wrong, but have never seen a pic, or heard of a capture).
The non tidal and tidal can connect through flooding, and the carp have moved at times between the sections.
Just wondered if anyone knew the reason the cats would prosper in the tidal but not the non tidal?

food i would have thought, if its where i think it is, Mullet.

[fenland piker]

Cats are well documented in a number of tidal rivers to my knowledge the tidal Thames has produced very large ones, as has the Trent and the Tidal Ouse seems to turn up plenty of juveniles in eel nets. the original fish are likely to have escaped from venues upstream during flooding. I would expect the conditions in the lower rivers suit them as there is plenty of food and they thrive in murky water.

[Daygo51]

Hi all, would be interested in peoples thoughts on this?
I regularly fish a southern river, and over the last 10 years more and more cats have shown up on the tidal stretch, from kittens to 70+.
Weird thing is the non tidal doesn’t seem to have ever produced a single cat (I may be wrong, but have never seen a pic, or heard of a capture).
The non tidal and tidal can connect through flooding, and the carp have moved at times between the sections.
Just wondered if anyone knew the reason the cats would prosper in the tidal but not the non tidal?

food i would have thought, if its where i think it is, Mullet.

Yeah I think you’re right (it may well be where you think it is?)

[The_Saint]

Deffo bigger cats on the non tidal of the thames than the tidal section