Dace · Leuciscus leuciscus

Dace in England's Rivers

The largest recorded measurement is 53 cm (20.9 in), from Shipston-on-Stour in River Stour on 9 September 1981.

Median length: 12.4 cm (4.9 in)
Fish measured: 444,622
Named waterways: 909
Latest observation: 23 Jul 2026

Direct individual measurements

Largest dace by waterway

Ranked by the largest individual measured in EA surveys. The sample size shows how many valid length measurements underpin each waterway's figures.

Rank	River or waterway	Largest	Median	Measured	Measured at
1	River StourMidlands	53 cm (20.9 in)	10.3 cm (4.1 in)	809	9 Sept 1981Shipston-on-Stour
2	River Pant (Main Reaches)Anglian	48 cm (18.9 in)	17 cm (6.7 in)	5,802	18 Aug 1999Goldsticks Farm
3	Duckpool DrainAnglian	45.1 cm (17.8 in)	6.3 cm (2.5 in)	334	26 Apr 1985Outfall To Witham (Duckpool)
4	River WithamAnglian	44.5 cm (17.5 in)	12.5 cm (4.9 in)	10,605	4 Aug 1988Beech House Farm L/B (Witham)
5	River WellandAnglian	41 cm (16.1 in)	13 cm (5.1 in)	9,327	12 Jun 1990Downstream Harringworth Road Bridge
6	River SwaleYorkshire and North East	40.8 cm (16.1 in)	5.2 cm (2 in)	2,046	8 Aug 2003Langton Bridge
7	Lincolnshire LakesAnglian	39.5 cm (15.6 in)	18.3 cm (7.2 in)	207	23 Feb 1998Mill Road Lakes Oblong Lake
8	River TudAnglian	36.7 cm (14.4 in)	15.8 cm (6.2 in)	2,214	30 May 2002Rogers Farm
9	River ArrowMidlands	36.5 cm (14.4 in)	15.2 cm (6 in)	1,517	6 Sept 1984Oversley Bridge
10	River Bure (central)Anglian	36.4 cm (14.3 in)	12.3 cm (4.8 in)	2,424	13 Jul 2007Upstream Oxnead Bridge

Equal maximum lengths are ordered by sample size. Measurements are shown as recorded and are not converted into estimated weights.

444,622 fish measured

Measured dace lengths

The median divides the measured sample in half. This distribution describes surveyed fish, not every dace living in England.

0–19 mm

116

20–39 mm

6749

40–59 mm

40582

60–79 mm

42226

80–99 mm

60400

100–119 mm

58210

120–139 mm

56056

140–159 mm

54574

160–179 mm

49226

180–199 mm

37953

200–219 mm

23259

220–239 mm

10595

240–259 mm

3574

260–279 mm

902

280–299 mm

138

300–319 mm

320–339 mm

340–359 mm

360–379 mm

380–399 mm

400–419 mm

440–459 mm

480–499 mm

520–539 mm

Only positive individual lengths that pass RiverFish's general measurement checks are included. Each bar covers a 20 mm range.

Latest EA evidence

Latest dace observations

The ten most recent survey visits that recorded dace in named waterways.

Date	River or waterway	Survey location	Fish recorded
23 Jul 2026	River Weaver	Wewe25	1
23 Jul 2026	River Lee	Amwell Loop	9
22 Jul 2026	River Darent	Twitton Brook	19
21 Jul 2026	River Colne	Uxbridge	4
16 Jul 2026	River Colne	Watford M1 link road	7
15 Jul 2026	Saredon Brook	DS Canal Feeder	12
14 Jul 2026	River Stour	Tendring Hall	26
3 Jul 2026	River Stour	Higham Hall	4
2 Jul 2026	Chad Brook (Main Reaches)	Broad Meadows	13
2 Jul 2026	River Dearne	Darfield (expanded 2016)	3

A survey record confirms dace at that place and time. It does not show present-day abundance or fishing access.

17,342 positive survey visits

Survey distribution

EA surveys recorded dace at 4,319 locations across 909 named waterways represented on RiverFish.

Region	Waterways	Locations	Survey visits	Latest record
Anglian	255	1,471	6,700	14 Jul 2026
South East	236	1,035	4,648	23 Jul 2026
Midlands	183	881	2,820	15 Jul 2026
South West	108	342	926	22 May 2026
North West	68	215	463	23 Jul 2026
Yorkshire and North East	59	375	1,785	2 Jul 2026

510 detailed pages

Dace by river

Open any river-specific page for its measured lengths, largest surveyed individuals, locations and observation history.

Anglian 159 pages

Midlands 88 pages

North West 30 pages

South East 143 pages

South West 49 pages

Yorkshire and North East 41 pages

How to read this page

Survey measurements, not angling records

Environment Agency surveys are designed to monitor fish populations. Their largest measurement is not equivalent to a verified rod-and-line record, and the survey sample does not include every river or every dace.

Waterway groups with administrative or mixed-river labels are excluded from the headline national totals and rankings. Their eligible river-specific pages remain available in the directory so no published destination is hidden.

The fish records use the Environment Agency source snapshot dated 10 August 2026.

How RiverFish handles the data →