Newsletter July 2005

Number 29

Registered Charity No: 1051068

Dear Members and friends,

Salmon are an arctic species that pre-date the ice age. I begin my letter for this issue with the thermometer reading 80ºF (27ºC), the river water temperature a reported 70ºF (21 / 22º C) and no hint of significant rain in the forecast. Add to this the extreme low flows for the time of year with Knapp Mill recording 7 cubic metres per second, (pre-abstraction), the decision throughout the river to voluntarily suspend salmon fishing, in the interests of fish welfare, is wise, timely and worthy of support. Sad, of course, to lose fishing time but dig the trout rod out, quietly stroll the bank in the evening with all the senses alert, flick a dry fly or a nymph to a likely spot and you may be surprised. It is small wonder that, with the increasing effects of global warming, some are asking for how long the already marginal lowland rivers can remain a suitable salmon habitat.

I quote the Environment Agency’s Hydrometric report for May where the summary states:

OVERVIEW

"A return to drier conditions in May extended the current exceptional period of rainfall deficiency, over the last seven months, to nearly 200mm. The steadying of the groundwater recession now leads to comparisons with groundwater levels experienced in 1997. Mean monthly river flows reflect a similar position, with the exception of the R Piddle, where spring time flows have been lower than any year since 1976. With soils drying rapidly (SMD is now at about 50mm), a significant dry spell could see a steep recession in river flows from their already depressed levels, leading to significant environmental stress."

Low flows

Clear water and low flow continue

In spite of this the broadcasters continue, almost without exception, to represent rain as bad news and hot sunshine as good. Meanwhile our rivers run at 55% of long term average.

Another EA report ‘The State of the Environment in the South West’ tells us, among much more, that total abstractions in the South West rose by 15% between 1995 and 2002 compared to a national average of 9%. No further ground water resources are available whilst household per capita consumption has increased from just over 146 litres per head per day in 2000 - 2001 to almost to almost 155 in 2003 - 2004.

Much of the remedy lies in our own hands.

A ripple of excitement travelled the river on the news of the 35+lb salmon caught and released at Avon Tyrell. About the same time a 32lb fish was reported from the River Itchen. What great encouragement to us all that, no matter how small, the gene pool still exists. Tim Goode reports a less happy story from the Spey where a 41lb fish was caught and released at Castle Grant. So far so good. The next day a 41lb salmon with a hook mark in the lip was caught upstream: and killed.

As I described in my February letter, DEFRA rules decree that all salmon rivers in England must be the subject of a Salmon Action Plan, produced by the Environment Agency, and these must be reviewed on a regular basis using a specified consultation process.

Thus the Hampshire Avon 1997 plan fell due for review and the process of consultation and discussion is underway. We submitted a Wessex Salmon response to the draft review and a number of committee members submitted individual responses. You can see the WSRT response on our web site www.wsrt.org.uk. A group of interested parties has met to discuss the way forward, including the scope of the group.

My personal submission expressed disappointment that no real recovery in salmon numbers was evident since 1997 and that a new approach was necessary.

Already new ideas and expansion of proven measures are on the table and we will ensure the process is vigorously pursued References to our web site are becoming more and more frequent. If you have not explored it yet I recommend it. As well as news and details of what we and our partners are up to there is a forum where you can make your views known and open discussion on valid subjects. Content aside John Levell with his techno wizardry has done a fantastic job.

I am pleased to report that I have been appointed for a third (and final) three year term to the South West Regional Fisheries Environment & Recreation Advisory Committee.

Nolan rules determine that no one serves for more that three terms. I am also delighted that Chris Klee, the committee Chairman has been re-appointed to serve for a further term.

As you may have read in the angling press the Irish drift net situation goes from bad to worse. The long heralded promises that the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) would comply with scientific advice by this year have proved empty of any truth and the Minister, Pat the Cope Gallagher has glibly postponed it to 2007. That is general election year in Ireland. He has also stated "No buy out in the lifetime of this Government". Some how his words have the hollow ring of "peace in our time" uttered by a certain salmon angling Prime Minister.

Well Mr Gallagher, we are not waiting upon your pleasure. Our EU complaint is in a very active and mature state with skilled and intensive work proceeding in Brussels. With the support of WSRT, Orri and NASF International and Irish colleagues I have been to Koblenz, Dublin, London and Brussels in this connection; all very positive visits. More on this inside. I remain optimistic. Certainly my GCE French and German have been severely tested!

Brian Marshall

Talk of big fish prompts the following from Mark Ferguson

The Big One

It was April 1953 and I was a very young and inexperienced salmon fisherman! I had two salmon to my credit of 16½ and 19½lbs, not very impressive when the average for Avon salmon at Ringwood was about 20 lbs. And I might say, I had never landed a salmon by myself.

My tackle would probably sound a little antiquated in 2005, but it was an 11 foot greenheart spinning rod, a wooden Nottingham centrepin reel, braided silk line that had to be dried every night 1½ ounces of Wye lead, 25 lb Alasticum trace wire (no nylon in those days!) and a 3 inch Golden Reflex Devon minnow.

My allotted beat for the morning was what we used to call The Grand Union Canal nearly a mile of straight pretty featureless water consisting of four pools, Farm, Gravel Pits, Firs and Saddlers. Below that the bank became an impenetrable swamp called Balls Hole. It was a pretty uninviting prospect for a morning’s fishing. However youth is always hopeful and I started in at the top of the Farm, casting down and across and hoping my bait was getting down deep enough. After no more than 20 yards my line stopped dead in the middle of the river. I tightened up and put the check on the reel and awaited developments. But absolutely nothing happened, and, in my inexperience, there I stood with heart beating fast and waited. But still nothing happened, and I remembered that I was meant to get downstream so the fish would fight me and the current. Downstream I went and still nothing happened. After five minutes or so I decided that I had to do something, so I started to increase the pressure and, lo and behold, it lifted off the bottom and sedately descended about 50 yards before settling back on to the bottom again. I had been told that the big Avon salmon could be slow, sulky brutes. I repeated the pressure and exactly the same thing happened off the bottom, downstream for 50 yards and back to the bottom. And so it went on through Grave! Pits and the Firs and into Saddlers.

By now I was starting to get a little desperate as I could not follow it very much further and it was still right in the middle of the river. I had to get it over to my side and my experience did not tell me how much real strain I could put on it. However I had to do something. So I got straight opposite it and applied far more strain than I care to think about. Very, very slowly it responded and started to come out of the main stream towards me. I just had to keep at it until finally it was right under my bank.

I looked over the bank and there in the dirty water I could just make out a long shadow. I had a 6 foot pole gaff across my back and reckoned that I might just reach it where it was. Tentatively I put the gaff in the water as deep as I could and lifted and hit something very solid. With an enormous heave I dragged on to the bank a seven foot waterlogged kale stalk!

On a more serious and nostalgic note.

Whilst discussing our aspirations for salmon recovery with Mr. Julian Mills he urged us not to overlook the true multi sea winter fish. Salmon of three sea winters or more. The magnificent fish caught and released at Avon Tyrell, and indirectly the Test fish remind us all that, no matter how small, there remains a 3SW+ gene pool out there. Surely the one fish caught cannot be the only one in the whole catchment?

The long standing feeding ground moratoria brokered by Orri’s NASF must make an invaluable contribution to the survival of the remnant stock.

What better way to remind us all of the fish that made the Avon famous than to look back and Julian Mills does just that in a letter from which we quote;

"Reading through the latest issue of your Newsletter has prompted me to write to you about the Avon’s 3 and 3+ SW salmon. Most people seem only to talk about the collapse of the salmon run in the last twenty years, in many cases because that is the period for which they have known the river. For those of us who have known it for much longer - I caught my first salmon 66 years ago - the first and disastrous collapse came in the 1960s, when the natural and historic run, of 3 and sometimes 4 s.w. fish (my father used to get the scales of any fish over 30 lb. read by Southampton University), crashed. Historically, the Avon always had the highest average weight (22 lb.) of rod-caught fish of any river in Britain (the Wye came next, at about 16.5). My father, who fished Bisterne from 1902 until 1966, and occasionally Winkton, took over 400 Avon fish, averaging 23.5 lb. (Fishing in those days finished at Bisterne in early June, partly due to the weed, but also at the end of the spring run; there was a small run of summer fish, but I think the first grilse was not caught until about 1952). Just to show that it really was the ‘natural and historic’ run, the (1913) edition of Grimble’s book (which I am sure you know), says of the Ringwood (now Several) beat:

"Since 1892 this water has given up an average of 17 fish per season with a mean weight of 23.5 lb." (and he records that my father was even then Chairman of the District Board for Avon and Stour, having taken off the in-river nets and then building new fish passes).

Now, I am quite aware that there was in the 1960s a general collapse of the spring run, and particularly the 3 and 4sw. fish, on both sides of the Atlantic, and that this is blamed on an adverse change in the availability of food in their winter feeding grounds. (Yet the run on the Russian rivers, which must go to winter feeding places not far away, remains huge). Then, when the large fish numbers were drastically reduced, the grilse run suddenly appeared (this happened in Canada as well), in rivers which, like the Avon, had never seen a grilse before.

There seems to me no doubt that those big fish, of a wonderful shape, were of a distinct breed, but very similar to the Frome fish; pre-war, ‘Christchurch salmon’ always fetched 2/6d a pound at Billingsgate, while all other salmon were 2/-, and Grimble even remarks on the demand for Avon fish. Surely it would be criminal not to make an effort to try to save the blood line in case conditions at sea ever change back again, and the Irish nets are removed. I believe there are still a handful of them left (an extremely large fish, in the 30 - 40 lb class, was played at Bisterne for 40 minutes last year and clearly seen), but this will not last much longer if nothing is done to save them. Reading the E.A.’s 2002 publication "Decline in Chalkstream Salmon"(and I would make the point that, from a little below Salisbury, the Lower Avon is not a true chalkstream) it seems that (p. 41) in-stream incubators might improve egg survival to anything up to 60%. A worry is expressed about non-natural selection, but this happens all the time in humans, domestic animals arid fish, without apparently any disastrous ill-effects; in any case, desperate situations demand desperate solutions. (Would today’s scientists have had worries about the last pair of dodos breeding?)

Might it not be possible to find some stream or carrier with a good food supply, perhaps in the Lower Avon, not unduly subject to floods, a section of which could be electric-fished to remove any predators, screened at the top and bottom to prevent unwanted access or escape, netted over to prevent heron / cormorant / kingfisher predation, and strip one or two pairs of 3 S.W. fish into an in-stream incubator, at comparatively little cost, holding the little fish to parr size, when they could be marked if desired? As to the holding of the adult fish until ripe, on the East Coast Carron they kept them in the dark in a short tunnel, in a feeder stream, with cocks and hens in separate large cages, which seemed to prevent any violent activity or casualties.

Might English Nature be interested in preserving such a unique strain? If not, could the E.A. perhaps postpone their next technical report, and use the funds to try a practical experiment? I know that, if we had a suitable stream or carrier at Bisteme, we would readily make it available at no cost, and I am sure some landowner would do so.

I have bothered you quite long enough, but I could not think of anyone else to write to, and I do feel so strongly about this. I should be so grateful if you could get "the authorities" interested in such a project.

Mr Julian Mills manages the Bisterne and Winkton Fishery for his brother Major John Mills. His proposals have been conveyed to the Environment Agency as part of the collective W S R T response to the 2004 Draft Review of the 1997 Salmon Action Plan.

Ed.

Research.

The Trust’s role in trying to unravel the mysteries that confront us within the Wessex Rivers has always been to adopt an open minded approach to problem solving. We do not have a predetermined agenda other than a healthy, self-sustaining riverine environment.

Unfortunately the gaps in our knowledge related to the ecology of these rivers are many and extremely wide. The problem is partly historic, springing from the premise that; "if it’s not bust don’t try and fix it" so for decades there has not been any urgency attached to advancing our understanding. Mother Nature has provided the raw material from an apparently inexhaustible well and the need to invest in the understanding of the fisheries has not been overly apparent. A good example of this continuing attitude to research is demonstrated by the seatrout. At present seatrout are at near record levels yet our knowledge of their preferred habitat and spawning requirements is lamentably lacking and very little to remedy this is likely to happen in the near future.

The changes in circumstances over the past couple of decades have sent shock waves through our fishery management policies. Fishery values have disappeared and the income has diminished to the extent the position occupied by fisheries related to other capital asset values has sharply declined. It is becoming accepted that the value of abstraction, STW discharge, aquaculture, moorings etc., increasingly outweigh the value of fisheries. Thankfully the valley has been placed under the protective umbrella of the conservation designations such as SSSI, pSAC etc. Fortunately one of the determinants of a healthy ecostructure in a riverine SSSI is a healthy fish population. It is under this umbrella that we must research and understand the causes of this decline and, if possible, implement changes that will address the problems.

If the changes are anthropogenic we need to have a good hard look at the future demands that will be placed on the river and ask are they inevitable or can we influence the impact of society. To this end the Trust recently funded a study by Dr David Solomon in an attempt to assess areas likely to come under this heading. An expanding population will demand the standard of living we all take as our indisputable right, dishwashers, multiple car ownership, ensuite facilities the list goes on - but will the river? Very political; and does the will exist within the majority of the population to introduce effective measures to safeguard the environment? The utility companies have statutory obligations to provide this expanding population with the services they expect. The agencies tasked with protecting our environment also have statutory obligations to ensure the impact of providing the utility services do not damage our environment. It will be very interesting to see the result of a trial of strength should such a scenario arise. Let a low winter rainfall and recharge year such as the present follow next year and such an examination may not be that far away.

If these problems are climate related, global warming or short term cycle, we are faced with the prospect of having to adapt, to take a stance that attempts to freeze frame the ecology at a time deemed most desirable by a chosen few smacks of King Canute. A Mediterranean climate may be the future for the rivers of Wessex and as such we cannot expect to retain the artic species that have evolved since the last Ice Age. If the species manage to survive we may well be faced with implementing changes within the fisheries; methodology, period and length of season etc. Concern related to temperature change has involved the Trust in its latest venture, along with Bournemouth and West Hants Water, funding a Cefas study into temperature related migration into the river using the latest sophisticated tracking technology. This will assess the implications of translocation of net caught fish at periods of low flow and the areas the fish seek under such stressful conditions. Where does this leave the Trust? We are a voluntary organisation working at the limits of our abilities to keep going. Altruistic bodies such as the WSRT are only as good as their fund raising capability and political clout. It is in the area of funding research that the Trust has an increasingly important role to play. This immediately places us in a position of making decisions based on funding availability that has the potential to be at odds with the position as stated in the first paragraph, in that we have to prioritise our expenditure.

Our early funding was purely directed with the objective of numerically increasing the number of salmon in our rivers. Establishing the extent of juvenile habitat within the Avon system, was one such project funded by the Trust; with a view to extending recruitment into areas currently unused. We firmly believe that good habitat for juvenile salmon is beneficial for the majority of species; there are however other problems involved which stifle progress. Those who have been involved with the Trust for a number of years realise that artificial enhancement of salmon has barriers other than those found in nature and developing these areas has political implications that far outweigh the dangers found in the river. Certainly an area we wish to see further developments. Ongoing egg box trials on the Test may well lead to similar trials on the Avon, only time will tell.

The current temperature related funding has far wider implications not only for all flora and fauna within the river but also society in general. If in the future we are to have clean rivers with sufficient flow to meet the demands placed upon them understanding the working of that riverine environment is crucial. It is with that same objective as we started with thirteen or fourteen years ago that still drives us today and to that end we need to expand our knowledge.

Enjoy your time by the river - John Levell

News from the Environment Agency, South Wessex

New faces We have two on fishery matters in the Agency. Andy Martin ( replacing Jim Lyons) is the Technical Specialist in the team. He has experience in fish farming in Scotland, operational and advisory work in Thames and HO policy, including the Trout and Grayling fisheries strategy and the national crayfish bylaws. Matthew Hart (replacing Emily White) joins us as a Technical Officer. He has experience in the fish retail business, and commercial eel and coarse fish work. News from Knapp Mill - the Turbine House counter is now refurbished and in place, and new kit is available for testing this year. We have been successful in securing funding for two years for a dedicated officer to run the counter and make improvements to the site. The job should be advertised soon - keep an eye on the Agency website, if you are interested in applying.

Reports have been produced on ‘The Historic Distribution of Salmon on the Stour’ and the 2004 Fisheries Monitoring Survey (landowners should have received complimentary copies). Further copies are available by request from Chris Doyle in our Corporate Services team. A free leaflet ‘Managing the Avon Valley and river Avon system for wildlife’ has been produced by a partnership of organisations working on the Avon. It sets out a common vision for management, including fishery work, ditches and trees, and weedcutting. Contact Neil Standen in the FRB team for copies.

Easements to fish migration have been put in place at three sites, two through agreed changes to sluice operation and one involving some minor building works to a structure. We have secured funding for this year for gravel cleaning on the Avon and Frome, and three projects to improve fish migration through structures on these rivers.

A new group, the Avon Salmon Group, has been set up to review actions on the Avon. The Wessex Salmon & Rivers Trust is represented on the group. We are currently looking at ways to improve the programme of gravel cleaning, and the use of in stream / bank side incubation boxes, and their relevance to the Avon system. A very positive start!

We look forward to a summer of taking these - and other - fishery and angling projects forward - low flows permitting. You may find our web site helpful - take a look at environment-agency.gov.uk, and click on the ‘fish’ page. This holds up-to-date information on angling management and latest news stories. You can even buy your licence there!

Judith Crompton

Fisheries, Recreation & Biodiversity Team Leader

South West Rivers Association

As reported, Wessex Salmon are Associate Members of the SWRA.
In April Brian attended their Annual General Meeting.

At the close of business he was surprised and delighted to accept, on behalf of W S R T, the Stuart Gardiner Award for Conservation. Chairman Humphrey Wood described the presentation as a reflection of the trust’s unstinting efforts toward salmon conservation, particularly in respect of the Irish netting. (www.wsrt.org.uk for pictures).

Trout in Schools, Year Two

After an unexpectedly successful first year, our second attempt at raising eggs to fry in a classroom went ahead with a little more confidence, although the changes to the design of the system, and the involvement of more schools in the programme were to provide more than enough extra complication to make the process as nerve wracking, yet exciting and fascinating as ever.

This year we provided Testwood and Applemore schools with sets of equipment, and much of the Autumn term involved purchasing and sorting out the assortment of tanks tubes pumps and various bits and bobs of stuff needed to give our precious eggs the best chance in life.

The system is now designed to be almost completely re-circulating, thus avoiding the usage of mains water that we had such concerns about last year. Conservation of water is as important as fish and other wildlife!
The build up of nitrates in the tanks once feeding the hatchlings commenced was prevented by the big biological filter on the pump, and a weekly flushing of tap water was an extra failsafe.

The beer coolers we purchased ensured that a constant temperature of about twelve degrees Celsius could be reliably maintained. We employed the two tubes devoted to Guinness, and left the lager and bitter connections unattached!

The tanks in the classroom were a constant source of questions, and of course once hatched , the progress of the fry was a cause of a great deal of interest from all my classes. It was useful to see the relevance of the process to lots of teaching, from reproduction in Year 7, water pollution in Year 9 and the effect of nitrates in drinking water in Year 11. The Environmental Science students in the Sixth Form were to study trout rearing as part of their Upper Sixth syllabus also, and a visit to a local trout farm proved to be very informative.

There were no two headed or two tailed specimens this year, but the survival rate was much better, with losses of about five percent. The children are always surprised to learn that the survival rates in the wild are less than one hundredth of one percent.

Releasing the fry

We are intending to provide systems for six schools next year, with the continued help of Tesco, who fund the equipment purchase, and are now in a position to produce an instruction booklet for any one who wants to try and raise eggs to fry in a similar way.

Thanks must go to Keith Elson for his help and advice in setting up the first system, to Mr McNulty at Ringwood School, who looked after the fry when I was away, and to the main Trout Team, Jordan Bryant, Jack Campion, Josh Smith and Robbie Ann Williams, who made a daily check and logged the progress of the fish, keeping the tanks clean, as well as helping to set up the system in the first place.

Many thanks also to Trafalgar Fisheries, who again provided the eggs and The Environment Agency, who also played their part in making the experiment such a success.
The local press gave us excellent coverage when the fish were released at Ibsley, and the children were delighted. We did feature on Meridian News for a short but nevertheless welcome report, so were pleased to have our five seconds of fame.
The startling news that a lost cat had returned home was deemed to be worth five minutes of intense coverage, but we will keep trying to persuade them that educational and environmental issues are as important!

Pete Reading

The Resurrection of Goliath

How do we remain motivated through long fishless hours? Searching the Avon in early spring with heavy fly tackle can become a dull routine. I deal with my frustrations by fiddling with old, possibly eccentric, tackle. This makes my fishing partner, Ian Ashby, laugh or even pity me, but it does bring me pleasure.

In 2002 I acquired an old Playfair Vibration greenheart fly rod. At 14 ½ feet it was heavy and dark with decades of old varnish and rusted rings. Stripping with Ronseal paint stripper, "it does exactly what it says on the tin", revealed a beautiful dark grained wood that was lovingly enhanced with new snake rings, red whippings and modern varnish. First trials of my reborn rod were at Ibsley. The slow action of the rod took a lot of adapting too, but gradually I learnt to cast across the river. It felt like a tree trunk when compared with a 14 foot Sharpes spliced cane. At the end of May 2002 Ian, Brian and I went to fish on the Tay. The river was low and seemed even more fishless than the Avon. I drifted into playing with my new "old friend" matched to a Rio Accelerator line. My biceps grew and I needed larger volumes of beer each night, but I had fun!

Our last day was a Saturday and after 6 days the 3 of us had caught nothing! The top of our beat had a junction pool where the River Lyon joins the Tay and I decided to spend my last hour here. At the tail of the pool the inevitable perverse event occurred and a salmon took my prawn fly. The greenheart bent into a tight curve as I walked the salmon upstream away from rapids that lie below the pool and offer certain escape to a fish that reaches them. After 15 minutes I hand tailed a sea liced hen fish of 12 ½ lbs and received a round of applause from an audience of anglers on the far bank. My old greenheart had succeeded where carbon had failed!

This experience set me thinking about comparing old and new salmon rods and I read many old books about rod design and casting. "Fine and Far Off" by Jock Scott, describing the work of Alexander Grant, the Wizard of the Ness, was particularly fascinating. Grant designed his greenheart vibration rods according to mathematical principles and in the 1890’s cast 65 yds with a 21 foot rod fitted with oscillating or fall down rings matched to a continuous taper silk line. He later sold his patents to Playfair of Aberdeen who manufactured Vibration spliced greenheart rods until at least the 1950’s. My curiosity aroused I started searching for a similar giant rod. Eventually I bought an 18 foot Playfair vibration with 2 tops and oscillating rings thought to be 70 years old.

Restoration started with stripping down to bare wood and then a month’s immersion in linseed oil. To avoid the cork handle being spoilt I made an oil bath out of plastic pipe held vertically in a bench vice with the rod joints hung down from a pulley on the garage roof beams. As you can imagine I have a tolerant and long suffering wife! Whilst linseed oil treatment progressed I carefully polished the complex fold down rod rings ready for reattachment. Both rod tops had old breaks that had been splice repaired, but inevitably these needed re-gluing and whipping.

The rod was finally finished by December 2004 and I took it to Cornwall for our end of season trip to the Fowey. The rod was as long as the Fowey is wide so I did not plan to fish with it, rather try it out casting with Howard Tonkin, an instructor and father and grandfather to UK casting champions. Howard is in his 80’s, but effortlessly picked up 30 yds of line up and cast it again. The rod was slow enough to allow a quick scotch during during the back cast! For those of you who believe that lightness is important in rod design the 18 foot rod, now nicknamed Goliath, weighs only 3 lb. Strangely since using it my 14 ½ foot greenheart feels ridiculously light!

I eagerly awaited the opening of the 2005 season on the Avon and even started doing exercises to build up my biceps. A heavy double tapered silk line was loaded on to a large Perfect reel and my fly box was filled with 6/0 singles. With such a vintage outfit what salmon could resist me? Well they all did except for a 30inch kelt.

This kelt was well mended and took a 6/0 Avon Eagle at the tail of Fence Pool on the Severals Fishery. He jumped and used the current well and let me taste the tangibly alive feeling of a wooden rod in battle. Interestingly the big single hook, de-barbed, held well yet shook out easily, perhaps trebles are over rated?

Wandering on the Internet I tracked down some greenheart eccentrics who are as odd as me. This surprised my wife as she maintains no one is that strange! I was delighted to find Harry Jamieson at Clan Rods on Speyside is still making greenheart salmon rods. This discovery led to me insisting that we extended this year’s Tay fishing holiday with a visit to Speyside.

I was disappointed that an afternoon standing in torrential rain testing greenheart rods with silk lines on the Spey did not excite the rest of the family. With time it will be a memory they treasure as much as I do and they will be glad I made them stand video filming for an hour to record it for posterity.

What next? Perhaps I need the salmon equivalent of the Golden Scale Club, who fish for barbel with cane rods and centre pins. Anybody weird enough?

Goliath stands ready for a visit to the Game Fair and then a rest before next year’s spring fishing. At 18 feet I worry that Goliath is not quite big enough for the Tay or Spey. Harry Jamieson can make a 21 foot Vibration rod, now that would be a challenge!

Michael Twitchen

Damsels and Dragons

On warm sunny days in summer our skies are full of buzzing bees, beautiful butterflies and myriad other winged creatures. The largest, and surely the most spectacular of these, are the dragonflies and damselflies. No other insects can match their jewel-like iridescence or their aerobatics.

Dragonfly Ruddy Darter

The Scarce Chaser (Libellula fulva Muller) common in the Lower Avon Valley and a Ruddy Darter (Sympetrum sanguineum Muller) also a regular.

Dragonflies occur almost anywhere there is still or running water. There are 38 species of breeding dragonflies in Britain. Some are common and widespread while a few have very specific requirements and a limited distribution. At the best sites, some of which may be nature reserves, as many as 20 breeding species have been recorded. Both Dragons and Damsels have two pairs of membranous wings with a fine network of dark veins. The front and back. Wings of Damselflies are the same size and shape whilst Dragonflies have front wings that are narrower than the back. Dragonflies settle with their wings held outstretched, usually at right angles to the body whilst most Damselflies perch with wings folded together along the abdomen.

Dragonflies have huge compound eyes that meet in the centre of the head. This gives them excellent all round vision making them difficult to approach, unless it is a cool day and they are too cold to fly. Damselflies have bulging eyes on both sides of the head, creating a hammer head appearance.

They possess no sting and pose no threat to us or other large animals, but some are inquisitive and may approach closely. They are carnivorous, however, feeding on insects, and do have strong jaws. If held they may nip a finger!

Golden Ringed Dragonfly Banded Demoiselle

The large Golden Ringed dragonfly and the Banded Demoiselle (Calopteryx splendens harris) damsel fly.

They first evolved more than 300 million years ago. Some of them had a wing span of 75cm/30 inches. The wing span of our largest British dragonflies; the Emperor, is just 10cm/4 inches. Modern dragonflies possess amazing aerobatic skills. They can take off vertically, fly in all directions, including backwards, and achieve speeds up to 60 mph.

On sunny days they can be seen around the waters edge, defending their territory, hunting for food or, in the case of males, seeking a female. Though some species seldom stray far from water, others may travel miles along hedgerows and woodland rides in search of prey.

Ireland

We open this section with a re-print from the STOP SALMON DRIFT NETS NOW campaign’s June newsletter. Find them on www.stopnow.ie

OPINION

Government action to end drift netting would be in the Government’s own interests
Stop Now has demonstrated in the past nine months that the drift net issue is not going to go away. In fact, it is heading for a much more heated stage as anglers and tourism interests become more frustrated and as a large number (probably a majority) of drift net licensees are thwarted by the lack of any mechanism to assist them to transition to other forms of income.

There is now an opportunity to commence a voluntary buyout of drift net catches based on plans emerging to some extent from the drift net community itself. They have been driven to this by the continuing downward spiral in quotas, stocks and catches. The cost of such a scheme, even if it were taken up in full on day one, would be only a fraction of that being continuously claimed by Minister of State Gallagher. A fund of the order of Euro 25/30 million paid out over four or five years would be sufficient to bring about the ending of drift netting, financed by a combination of State and private sector monies.

Such a development would be in the political interests of the Government itself. They could boost their badly dented green credentials, help the drift net men escape from the grip of a cruel dilemma in which they are forced to continue killing fish that they themselves know are under threat, earn the credit of the salmon angling and tourism sectors and get the international community off their backs. All of that could be done at a very manageable price to the exchequer having regard both to the conservation and bio-diversity objectives that would be met and the boost to tourism that would result from only a fraction of the fish being saved being diverted to angling exploitation.

Instead, the Government (or at least the Minister of State) has opted for a policy that puts the future of the salmon in many of our rivers under serious threat and which only benefits the tiny handful of drift net licensees who make large catches. This policy is ecologically, economically, socially and morally mad and we will continue to campaign against it with increasing intensity.

Our thanks to Niall Greene and colleagues for this contribution. Ed.

The Wider View

As I said at the WSRT’s AGM in March, NASF launched a salmon conservation project in Norway this spring which resulted in a buyout of the nets in the Trondheim fjord. A considerable number of salmon rivers, including some of those famous for very big fish, run into this long fjord.

I am now getting several calls every day to tell me the rods have enjoyed the best June salmon fishing for a long time, even though the snow is still melting and making it difficult for the salmon to reach the upper beats.
Surprising? No! The same thing would happen to the runs in the south of England if the Irish nets were removed. There is no real mystery about good salmon conservation. There is no black hole that prevents stocks returning to abundance. Salmon managers need to make radical changes in their priorities. Of course, this includes maximising the benefits of better river environments and saying goodbye to scientific averages and the so-called minimum spawning escapement theories. Emphasis must be placed on getting as many healthy adults as possible returning from the sea. Maximise your spawning stock and employ carefully focussed stocking.

The strange fisheries policies employed by the EU countries have failed to sustain healthy stocks. Our crude analysis of the biomass of EU salmon suggests that up to 99% of the biomass is created outside EU fisheries jurisdiction. Most of the growth takes place around Iceland, Greenland and the Faeroe Islands.

It makes no political or strategic sense for the public or the private sector of any EU country to support the continuance of mixed stock fisheries. They must realise that their salmon management policies must fully respect the enormous contribution of the northern countries especially as none of those nations will ever join the EU.

In May, NASF negotiated an extension of the agreement that protects the sea feeding grounds off Greenland. Thanks to the very good sense of Greenland’s commercial fishermen there will now be no commercial salmon fishing on the high seas anywhere in the North Atlantic this year.

The agreement, under which the islanders are compensated for giving up their rights to catch salmon in the seas off Greenland, is important for our efforts to restore both multi sea-winter salmon and grilse. But it is particularly important for its protection of the large spawners that used to provide anglers with their greatest challenge.
Following the many agreements that NASF has been able to make, the last two years have produced improved salmon runs for many rivers and catches have contradicted scientific predictions of reduced numbers of 2-sea-winter salmon. In 2004 the NASF agreements actually returned record numbers of salmon to Iceland, Scotland, and Canada.

Apart from compensating the fishermen financially, NASF has succeeded in expanding Greenland’s inshore fisheries by promoting new and sustainable forms of fishing for other fish. After signing the extension agreement in Copenhagen KNAPK’s new chairman Peter Olsen said: "We are extremely pleased with the NASF redevelopment project. We have successfully concluded nearly 400 projects in Greenland that are benefiting coastal fishermen in most of our communities, most notably in the lumpfish, turbot and snow-crab industry."

Yes, all this is very pleasing. But I must remind you that these agreements cost in the region of £400,000 every year. People tend to forget these agreements are long term and need to be financed annually. We are finding it more and more difficult every year to collect enough money to continue our protection on the high seas.

NASF’s various agreements will allow an extra 300,000 wild salmon to return to the countries of western European this year. Sadly, as a result of the astonishing refusal of the government of the Irish Republic to accept the recommendations of their fishery scientists we expect that Ireland’s drift and draft nets will prevent some 250,000 salmon from reaching their spawning grounds in their native rivers of Ireland, Britain, Spain, France and Germany. This acts as a totally unnecessary brake on our efforts to restore fish numbers.

It is likely to be disastrous for Ireland’s own rivers. The Irish scientists say that the salmon rivers in eight of their country’s regions cannot afford to lose a single fish. But it is the threatened or severely depleted stocks in the rivers of France, Spain, Germany, England and Wales that are likely to suffer the most.

There is a terrible irony about Ireland’s selfish plunder of the North Atlantic’s slender stocks of wild salmon. It would not be possible for Ireland to help itself to such a huge number of fish if NASF had not persuaded the commercial fishermen of Greenland, Iceland and the Faeroes to protect the salmon’s sea feeding grounds.

With kind regards from Iceland

Orri Vigfússon

A Reminder of a Few Facts

The International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) tell us that for the period 1991 to 1993 the Irish drift net fishery caught 26.79% of the total Southern Europe region catch.
ICES also tell us that for the period 2001 to 2003 they caught 50.84% of the catch.
Ireland’s own Central Fisheries Board figures reveal for the same two periods the numbers of salmon caught by their drift nets as 1991/93 - 397,348 up to 2001/03 - 517,571 (+30.26%).

CEFAS predictably say "one must be very careful with such baseline comparisons" pointing out that the 91 - 93 catches were lowest for 30 years. The first figures refer to the share of the southern European catch, not numbers. WE SUBMIT THAT 51% MIXED STOCK SHARE OF ANY SIZE CATCH IS FAR TOO MANY.

We were pleased to see that, just as Niall Greene arrived for his UK speaking tour, (reported elsewhere), the Environment Agency (Godfrey Williams - Policy & Process Manager) published a paper stating, in unequivocal terms, the damage the Irish Drift nets are doing to our diminished stocks. Up to now we have had to search various area publications for a few very muted comments.

We quote the Key Points from the paper:

The 10% figure quoted above is an average of all the rivers. It is long established that the most severe exploitation is suffered by the Test, Itchen and Avon, progressively reducing further west and north to as low as 2% in North Wales and beyond.

Reference is also made to a report on the subject being prepared by the EU Fisheries Commission. That Commission, like NASCO, has no mandate in members’ territorial waters.

The paper reports that the current Irish exploitation level of the river Test, for example, is 12% of the returning fish. This is down from 28% prior to the ‘1997 Management Measures’ in which so much faith is placed although not by us. To these figures must be added illegal fishing and seal mortality. No one disputes that the Rivers Avon and Itchen cSAC’s will suffer the same level of losses to the Test.

Clearly the damage done to a crashed population by the higher pre 1997 licensed fishing and ‘non fishing mortality’ must remain irreparable until the continuing high levels are stopped.

We have also enquired if this damage to a threatened population is exponential. Godfrey Williams tells us "Exploitation should not have additive effects year on year unless the critical level is exceeded", going on to say "However there are various reasons why the risks to the stock will be greater when abundance is lower, and this includes stocks that are naturally small (i.e from small rivers) as well as stocks that are in a depleted condition as a result of environmental factors or excessive exploitation."

Remember: any exploitation of our fish by the Irish is illegal.

EU Matters

So: to our long outstanding complaint against Ireland with the EU and those of the Wye,, Eden, S W R A and Ireland. These have been the subject of detailed scrutiny by all twenty five commissions and, as far as we can tell you at the moment, have withstood this scrutiny. The process continues, we hope toward a positive conclusion soon.

To promote the progress of this complaint and, on a larger canvas, the shared objectives of the NASF International Coalition, Brian has taken part in three international initiatives.

In February he joined Orri Vigfusson and Peter Olbrich. NASF Germany and President of Lachs-und Meerforellen Sozietat e.V. Hamburg to visit the Rhine Commissioners in Koblenz.
The Commission is undertaking the most fantastic works to restore the Rhine from every viewpoint, including, of course, salmon. The commissioners are scientists and diplomats from Holland, Germany, France, Luxembourg and Switzerland who all share the catchment.
They, like the rest of southern Europe, suffer losses to the Irish Drift nets. Orri outlined the NASF philosophy for restoration of Europe’s salmon. Peter advised the work already underway, in this respect, in northern Germany whilst Brian introduced the Wessex Salmon / EU initiative.
All were warmly received and undertakings to carry the message back to their respective governments were offered.

Next, in May, Brian went to Dublin and a reception hosted by M. Frederic Grasset, Ambassador to France in Ireland at his residency.
Again in the good company of Orri Vigfusson, Noel Carr, Jim Haughey and Casper Moltke he joined a gathering that included Ambassadors to Ireland from America, Spain, and Germany.
Unfortunately both Noel Dempsey TD Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources and his Minister of State, Pat the Cope Gallagher sent apologies pleading ‘previous engagements.
Rory O’Hanlan TD, Chairman of the Dail. attended. During a long conversation with Brian, he reported that he had spoken to Gallagher who assured him that the Irish drift nets were not taking any salmon originating in other nations’ rivers. At the close of that conversation he undertook to speak to Gallagher again!
Every opportunity to discuss the problem in detail with all the official representatives, including drift netsmen, was offered and taken.

At the close, M. Grasset, the most gracious of hosts, summed up the evening by assuring us they were in no doubt what messages they should be taking back to their respective ministers.

In June a most important event in Brussels, orchestrated by Orri’s ‘French Connection’ in the persons of M. Michel Maumus from the Pyrenees Atlantique region and M. Marc-Adrien Marcellier, Director NASF France, was a joint presentation to the E U Parliamentary Fisheries Committee.
Brian was invited to represent WSRT to describe the dire state of our lowland salmon stocks, the steps we have taken and describe the role of the E U H D.
With Kurt Pichowski the team duly presented itself to the committee to be greeted by a serious and somewhat heated effort by Sean O’Neachtain MEP to halt the proceedings. His effort was overruled by the President M. Phillipe Morillon who cautioned the team not to attack any member country present. The whole delivery proceeded through a series of Irish protests ultimately resulting in Brian’s microphone being switched off by the Chair as soon as the Habitats Directive part of his speech was reached!,
At this point we were supported by vigorous contributions to our objectives by Neil Parish MEP (South West England), Struan Stevenson MEP (Scotland) and James Hugh Allister MEP (Northern Ireland). They each criticised Ireland for the damage they were doing to European salmon stocks and for endless empty promises that produced no action. These gentlemen will try to institute an ‘Own Initiative Report’, at the suggestion of the Chair, the means by which the Committee ask the Commission to take action.

LATE NEWS

We can now, with the greatest of pleasure, announce that the EU Commission for the Environment have upheld the complaint placed by the WSRT against the Irish Government licensed Driftnet Fishery and are opening proceedings. To all WSRT members well done in supporting the executive in this complex procedure that has received different levels of support from outside bodies and agencies much of which can be described as lukewarm at best.

As you are all only too well aware for many years the licensed Irish Salmon driftnets have captured hundreds of thousands of migrating salmon off their west coast. Many of these originate from endangered populations in protected rivers of England, Wales and Southern Europe. In particular they catch salmon destine for the Rivers of Wessex one of which, the Hampshire Avon has the European Special Area of Conservation designation.

Because the Irish Government have consistently refused to obey the EU rules in 2002 we lodged a formal complaint with the EU Environment Commission citing four infringements of the Habitats Directive. This complaint was immediately supported by replicas from The Wye and Usk Foundation, Eden Rivers Trust and later the South West Rivers Association. Most importantly support was added last year by the submission of eight complaints from Irish interests.

There is still a long way to go before we see the last of these interceptory nets taking our Wessex salmon but a very large step toward that goal has been taken with this decision from Europe. The Commission will now issue a written warning to the Irish Government, notifying them of the findings and informing them that continued infringement may lead to prosecution in the European Courts.

This has all happened due to the enormous effort and dedication of Trust Chairman Brian Marshall who has personally guided this very complex issue through the maze of European legislation. Fate has played a cruel trick on Brian in that when he should have been rightly receiving congratulations and plaudits from all involved in the salmon world he has had to go into hospital with a severe chest infection. Hopefully by the time you read this he will be out of hospital and on the mend but I’m sure you will all join with me in wishing Brian a speedy recovery.

John Levell