Scientists from the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust’s groundbreaking Salmon & Trout research Centre on the River Frome in Dorset have just completed their 2010 salmon research report, and this comprehensive record, showing the upstream movement of Atlantic salmon, reveals the highest increase of adult salmon since 1998, with more than 1000 fish returning to the river from the sea.
This is the 38th consecutive year that researchers have accurately recorded data on upstream salmon migration in the river Frome and it is therefore one of the most comprehensive, long-term records of Atlantic salmon movement in Europe.
The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust’s research facility at East Stoke has an unparalleled array of scientific equipment straddling the river and this enables the team of researchers to monitor the total number of adult salmon migrating upstream, juveniles going downstream and individually tagged individuals over their life span.
Significantly, this long-term data provides evidence about the dramatic decline of Atlantic salmon and raises potentially fascinating insight on the causes of these declines. In the early 1990’s there was a significant crash in salmon numbers of salmon in the North Atlantic and from an average of nearly 2000 fish per year the Frome numbers dropped to a low of just 500 fish. The 2010 data is thus showing an encouraging upturn in the number of fish returning to the river. In addition, the count of emigrating salmon smolts also showed an increase in the number of fish leaving the river and 13,265 smolts were counted emigrating out to sea during April & May.
The GWCT’s 2010 salmon report gives an overview of the salmon research carried out to date and includes detailed graphs and information on the data from the adult salmon counter. Data from this research will help the Trust identify many of the critical factors that affect mortality of Atlantic salmon such as river-site factors. To download a copy of the report, click on the following link: www.gwct.org.uk/salmonreport
