We woke to the peaceful sounds of birds chirping in the quiet Rv Park. Right next to a lake. I didn't take a morning swim, there was plenty of time for it but I just wasn't feeling it. We got a late checkout time so we were able to stay all the way to 1. Kim and Daniel did some work while I called different Rv parks to try to figure out where to stay. I found a nice campground in the Hot springs National Park and called them. The park looked pretty and had a little creek to swim in. As well as hiking trails that went into Hot springs, Arkansas
We left at 1, and began the 4 1/2 drive to Hot springs. We had been used to freeways and multi laned roads from our previous drives, but today we were on single laned country roads. The surrounding were prettier, little towns came and went, good phone service swayed. After some time the outskirts of Hot springs began to show up around us. We drove past the theater that the movie would be showing at on Saturday. We exited the town and headed up a road half a mile to the Hot springs National Park. I had read on their website that there was a place to swim just by the campground so once we had parked I went and checked it out, multiple kids were swimming and even jumping off a rocks into the water. I went back and put on my swimsuit, then headed back to water. I dunked my head under water a few times then noticed this little girl quaking on a rock.
She was saying something about a biting fish, I thought the girl was being crazy, I swam over and checked it out. I reassured her that the fish wasn't gonna hurt her, and right when I said that I felt a little nip on my toe! I flinched and backed away, the girl got up and jumped on some rocks and got out. I swam back to my original spot. I almost thought I'd imagined it but I wasn't super sure. When I came back to the Rv I laughed about it to Kim. I was beginning to think I had made it up. When Kim came down to the river to look at the water I told her where it had happened. We walked across on some rocks and looked at how we could make the water deeper. Kim went and stood right by the place where the fish was, she hadn't remembered what I had said until she gasped and splashed backwards. The fish had bit her too!
She got out and put her hand in the water, the fish would swim directly over to her hand and nip it. We had never seen anything like it. After playing around with the fish a little we came to the conclusion that the fish was protecting its eggs. We weren't sure that fish guarding their eggs was a thing but it was the only logical explanation for its behavior.
Fish guarding their eggs IS a thing, many kinds of fish do it. Often the male. She deposits eggs and swims on; he releases sperm over them and sticks around, protecting them and fanning the right temperature water onto them with his tail. In other species, both parents do it. Hadn't heard of them biting humans, though!!
A local lady said it was called a sun perch. She was surprised at how aggressive it was with us. But also said that it was a good one to eat and that the streams around Arkansas are filled with them.
Did you ask any locals about the biting fist? I"m so curious now
Fun story! Bridget and Cora’s mom, Sheila, had family in north west Arkansas on Lake of the Ozarks. On a visit we tried swimming there but the biting fish chased us out too. Maybe it’s an Arkansas thing?