SportAngling Notes

Angling notes: Anglers working to restore sustainable levels of Atlantic salmon

Last year anglers released 54 per cent of their catch

Lower River Lee, Cork: one of the five rivers in four counties that accounted for 53pc of salmon caught in 2022.
Lower River Lee, Cork: one of the five rivers in four counties that accounted for 53pc of salmon caught in 2022.
Derek Evans
Mon Jul 31 2023 - 14:32

The Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Statistics Report for 2022 clearly shows anglers and the authorised commercial sector are making efforts to restore our Atlantic salmon back to a sustainable plateau. Last year, anglers released 54 per cent of their catch.

The report, published by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI), outlines the number of fish caught by all methods (commercial and angling, including catch and release), stood at 26,715 salmon and 2,082 sea trout.

This is a reduction of 14pc on last year’s salmon catch (31,148), but an increase of 30pc of sea trout (1,595).

Five rivers in four counties accounted for 53pc of salmon in 2022 – 18pc on the Moy; 16.1 on Blackwater (Lismore); 7.3pc on Laune; 5.9pc on Corrib and 5.4pc on the Lower Lee.

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Anglers from 42 countries held salmon licences, most of which were sold in the Republic of Ireland (66.5pc), Northern Ireland (11pc) and England/Scotland/Wales (6.6pc). Hundreds of anglers from France, Germany and United States also bought licences during trips here.

Commercial fishermen caught 15pc of the salmon catch compared to 21pc in 2021 and recreational anglers caught 85pc compared to 79pc in 2021.

A total of 17,318 licences were bought by anglers, up some 11pc on the corresponding figure for 2021.

Of the 147 salmon rivers in Ireland, 48 are deemed to be fully open with 33 open for ‘catch and release’ while 66 continue to be closed

Barry Fox, head of operations at IFI, said: “It is very encouraging to see the year-on-year increase in catch-and-release of salmon. This method supports the angling community to sustainably fish and conserves our salmon stocks.

“Wild Atlantic salmon and sea trout continue to face numerous risks including climate change, water pollution and illegal fishing. I commend our stakeholders who participate in the Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme which limits the number of fish that can be retained.”

NCFFI seeking Angling Club Development Officer

The National Coarse Fishing Federation of Ireland (NCFFI) is seeking the appointment of an Angling Club Development Officer. The position is a paid role to support volunteers to increase membership and participation in angling in Northern Ireland.

The successful candidate will work to engage community-wide to underrepresented groups and increase the number of young people, women and those with disabilities.

A working knowledge of computer software such as Word and Excel is essential and compliance with NCFFI policies is key.

Working hours are 37 per week, with flexible arrangements available. Travel will be involved and personal transport is required.

This role has been made available through Sport Northern Ireland System Investment funding for NGB’s. For full job description and to download an application form, visit www.ncffi.ie/CACDO. Last day for submission is 21st August 2023.

Irish Marine Recreational Angling Survey

Mackerel, pollack, dogfish, sea bass and whiting were the most-widely caught fish species by Ireland’s 250,000 sea anglers in 2022. The results are taken from the Irish Marine Recreational Angling Survey (IMREC) app, which enables anglers to log their catch details on their phone.

Other data revealed that along more than 3,000 kilometres of coastline Cork, Clare, Donegal, Kerry and Wexford were hotspots for marine angling.

Anglers spent an average of 42 hours fishing with an average catch of 80 fish annually. During a single trip they caught more than six fish and catch-and-release rates were over 80 per cent.

Flounder, poor cod, dab, ballan wrasse and smoothhound were also among the top 10 most-caught species around Ireland’s coastline.

Sea anglers of any experience are invited to sign up to the IMREC app via the IFI website and can easily log their trips, attach photos, record details such as tide, weather and bait and look back over previous sessions on their interactive map.

Dr Ryan, research officer with IFI, said: “We are very keen for more anglers to sign up to our anonymous, free and easy-to-use app [which] provides invaluable intelligence that feeds into a broader European project that monitors marine fish stocks.”

*If you have an angling story to share, please send it to me at angling@irishtimes.com