John Main was branded a nuisance neighbour because his ornamental fish pond was considered too noisy.

Mr Main has had a pond in his garden for more than a decade and has built up a stock of tropical fish.

But recently he had to replace the pump used to oxygenate the water with a newer model.

The louder hum of the pump and the bubbling of the water caused neighbours in Westerhope, Newcastle, to complain.

Newcastle City Council warned him he faced prosecution under noise abatement laws if he did not silence the pump.

He immediately took out the pump - resulting in the death of five fish.

Now Mr Main is locked in a battle with the council as he tries to recover the £2,000 value of the fish.

Mr Main, 45, who lives with his mother, Catherine, said: "I had no choice but to turn off my pump and watch my fish die.

" I asked for the money from the council to reimburse me for the fish. But they said there is nothing they could do.

"They were dealing with a noise complaint and that had been sorted."

One neighbour said: "It was far too noisy. There were people who couldn't get to sleep at night."

A council spokesman said: "We received complaints about the noise and officers from the environmental health department went to investigate."