this don’t look to good 🙄
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I stopped salmon fishing many years ago as the numbers dwindled. Still see a few on the Wye whilst out for coarse fish, but such a great pity. I was hooked on Trout and Samon magazine in the 70’s and 80’s but I’d need to go well beyond our shores to Ireland or Scandinavia to see any good fishing again.
NoIDeer
Well-Known Member
Fish farming has to play a part in this. They are to be seen in almost every, what was, pristine inlet in Scotland. They use chemicals and medicines to keep their fish "healthy" and must do untold damage to the prospects of wild fish.
I wonder if the Scandinavian owners of these businesses are doing the same to their homeland?
I wonder if the Scandinavian owners of these businesses are doing the same to their homeland?
Foxyboy43
Well-Known Member
I remember many years ago doing some work with the then NI Environment Agency who were considering the planning application for the first salmon farm in NI. I was told at that time that these farms and their “deposits“ basically mask the “scent” of the adjacent river which means migratory species cannot find their home river thus breeding doesn’t happen.
Dunwaters
Well-Known Member
That’s going to cause a big debate.
If salmon are indeed endangered you can’t justify catching them, by any method, which will cause the rod and line men and the riparian owners a lot of sleepless nights.
Even with strict catch and release using barbless hooks, you can’t really contend that sticking a piece of Japanese steel through its face improves its chances of survival.
If salmon are indeed endangered you can’t justify catching them, by any method, which will cause the rod and line men and the riparian owners a lot of sleepless nights.
Even with strict catch and release using barbless hooks, you can’t really contend that sticking a piece of Japanese steel through its face improves its chances of survival.
They are, even on the Alta. Mickel Frodin, famous fly tier and fisherman, has done his best to expose this and I think that he ended up in jail over it.
I have given up salmon fishing, having been mad keen in the past. There’s just no point. On the upside, that’s one of the reasons I started deer stalking.
You missed the Fish farming issue . Disease, pollution and escaped fish effecting the gene pool and commercial trawling of sandeel sparts without limits to use as fertilizer ! Seals ? Not normally a big factor and something that have been on the Estuaries a very long time . Only when they come right up into the freshwater are they a serious threat to Salmon population .Pollution, poachers, protected seals and p***-poor responses to same by successive governments.
Is it any wonder the salmon are in need of protection?
Foxyboy43
Well-Known Member
Andy seatrout
Well-Known Member
As a salmon fisher still - took it up in 2001…. There’s a multitude of problems; salmon west coast fish farms impact both salmon and seatrout.
Pollution from water companies and farmers…. Lots of siltation and where I live in Powys - chicken farms….impacting the Wye and the Severn…. The coarse fish in the Severn are on their way out… in the summer the river stinks ….
In river predation from fish eating birds really gets my goat- RSPBs own website states the goosander as first being recorded in the uk in 1870s, with Scotland and wales first colonised in the 1970s…. How this is not classed as an invasive species I do not know…..
The NRW and EA don’t want to upset the RSPB, total hypocrisy - the RSPB were quite happy to shoot the Ruddy duck out when it threatened the white headed duck…… but that’s saving another bird isn’t it?
Who gives a **** about the salmon and seatrout? The NRW and EA certainly don’t …..I do but short of breaking the law there’s only the hope that bird flu kills all of them…. Which it won’t, not that lucky….
Pollution from water companies and farmers…. Lots of siltation and where I live in Powys - chicken farms….impacting the Wye and the Severn…. The coarse fish in the Severn are on their way out… in the summer the river stinks ….
In river predation from fish eating birds really gets my goat- RSPBs own website states the goosander as first being recorded in the uk in 1870s, with Scotland and wales first colonised in the 1970s…. How this is not classed as an invasive species I do not know…..
The NRW and EA don’t want to upset the RSPB, total hypocrisy - the RSPB were quite happy to shoot the Ruddy duck out when it threatened the white headed duck…… but that’s saving another bird isn’t it?
Who gives a **** about the salmon and seatrout? The NRW and EA certainly don’t …..I do but short of breaking the law there’s only the hope that bird flu kills all of them…. Which it won’t, not that lucky….
countrryboy
Well-Known Member
While im sure fish farming does not help, if it was a massive cause would there not be a big difference between the east coast and west coast rivers in salmon numbers? I know the est coast has always had some big salmon fishing rivers but numbers in them has crashed also.
No doubt fish eating birds with cormarants now very widespread inland in big numbers, possibly also rise in otter numbers, no doubt the rise in seal numbers is have a big effect esp coupled with low flow some late summer autumns, making iteasy to eat large numbers trapped in low pools.
1 thing i was told by the local fishery manager who was prety clued up on salmon conservation and did make a big difference to catches on the local river.
He reckoned the global warming ( yes i know everyones favourite bogeyman) but he said where salmon traditionally feed the water temp has risen just enough to let other more competative/voracious?sp feeders in and their hammering the feed that salmon used to have almost all too themselves.
I know the rivers will never have been cleaner in the last 50-100 years, at the time ( mibee 10-15 years ago) he reckoned the smolt numbers leaving was really pretty healthyish and the problem was out too sea with not enough coming back
CookM
Well-Known Member
I fished Upper Bigswear a couple of years back in July,conditions were a bit high that day.
We saw several leaping both days and l hooked one which spat me out after a short run.
The guy there said he was seeing a lot less than previous years.
A shame as a lovely river to fish.
You forgot the sea lice that lurk in these cage farms that then attach to migratory wild fish. Yet the buffoon Jamie Oliver was happy enough to take Sainsbury's money to push their pink farmed frankenfish.
The core problem is definitely at sea - everything we do inland to protect them is just rearranging deck chairs.
Massive industrial overfishing seems a very simple explanation.
NoIDeer
Well-Known Member
As a lot of the above alludes to, salmon need to eat and industrial fishing has nicked all the wild salmon food to feed our Christmas Day starter.
Merry Christmas and guilty as charged!
Search for "the most toxic food in the world". Quite a few documentaries on it on Youtube. Norwegian salmon.
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