Our largest salmon of 2002: - 21 lbs (Just under 10 Kgs)

Open to offers!

WILD SALMON SEASON - 2002

The 2002 quota for the commercial fishery was set at 220,000 salmon (620 tonnes) with no quota applied to the recreational fishery. The 2001 nominal salmon catch (commercial + recreational), based on a new method of estimation - the carcass tag system - was 283,513 fish weighing 764t*. The nominal salmon catch for 2000 was 228,200 (621t). The wild catch in 1999 weighed 515 tonnes, down on the 1998 catch of 624t.
*The 2001 value is derived from the logbook reports of commercial fishermen with an estimate for angling catch. It is assumed that a significant proportion of the legal unreported catch of previous years will now be accounted for, and this is reflected in the higher catch recorded in 2001 (764t compared to 621t in 2000).

SEASON SUMMARY

· Runs of both spring salmon and grilse were relatively late arriving to the Irish coast in 2002.

· The quota introduced to the commercial fishery, for the first time was set at 92.6% of the 2001 commercial catch. With storms at sea throughout June and heavy rain it seemed unlikely that the quota would be taken. Significant catches from Donegal to Dingle, at the end of June altered this situation and it appears that districts such as Letterkenny, Ballyshannon, Sligo, Ballina, Bangor, Ballinakill, Connemara and Kerry have met quota. With catches improving on the south coast to the end of July the Waterford and Lismore districts should also approach quota. Limerick, Cork and possibly the Galway district will come in below quota.

· The 2002 nominal catch is likely to come in at or just below 620t. Prices paid for all grades were ~40% ahead of 2001 with late availability matching demand. Drift nets will be seen to have taken their biggest ever share of the commercial catch (>82%) as other engines (draft, loop & snap nets) were largely ineffective due to flooding. High rainfall also contributed to an increased escapement of wild fish, as did quota restrictions in certain districts.

· Ranched salmon made a contribution to catch (10-28%) in the Connemara, Ballinakill, Bangor and Sligo districts.

· Though all salmon sampled (>75,000) were properly carcass tagged, concern was expressed that untagged salmon were landed and that a market existed for it. At the other end of the spectrum there were those who worried that carcass tags were used without bodies attached. Some draft net fishermen were frustrated, as it appeared that the quota destined for draft nets was reduced and that some drift net caught fish were marketed with green carcass tags. The distribution of carcass tags after the initial allocation also drew criticism as it was felt that the present system encouraged early fishing to the detriment of draft nets. Fortunately for draft net fishermen the situation improved slightly at the end of the season as rivers fell.

Introduction

Carcass tagging of all wild salmon continued in 2002 with little resistance from any sector. Rod caught salmon were tagged from January 1st with blue gill tags. The sale of rod caught salmon was prohibited and only 1 salmon could be retained by a licensed angler per day before the 1st June. Thereafter no restrictions were applied to angling effort except where local bye-law regulations existed. There were no terminal traps operating in Ireland but an amazing example of a working head weir can still be seen at low tide in Doonbeg, Co Clare.

Draft net (green tag) exploitation started on the 12/05/2002 - subject to certain bye-laws: draft nets on the Munster Blackwater and Laune rivers were not in operation again this year as part of catchment management plans. Drift net fishing commenced on the 3rd June with all drift net caught fish sporting a red tag. In the interests of safety a storm day rule was introduced for the first time in 2002. This rule was applied to the commercial fishery and allowed boats fish an extra day a week (Friday) if the boat was unable to fish a day from Monday to Thursday. The fishermen had to notify the Regional Fisheries Board's (RFB's) before 10am on the day of the storm to get a pin number or stamped logbook - the following Friday they could legally fish.

Commercial Report

The season for drift net fishermen opened slowly, as few salmon appeared until mid-June with poor catches from Burtonport to Ballydavid - many drift net fishermen had only double-digit returns for their first week's fishing. At Burtonport and Greencastle the catch was poor initially but recovered to 2001 levels by the end of June. By mid-July Greencastle exceeded last years catch and were allowed to continue fishing until August 7th as sufficient stocks had entered the Foyle catchment. Killybegs started poorly in June but excelled in early July while boats fishing further south at St. John's Point picked the wrong saint to follow - Glencolumbcille was the place to be. The Erne received their ranched stock just as draft nets commenced operation in the estuary at the start of July. Draft netting ceased by mid-July as the ~420 quota was quickly filled. A good run of salmon - both ranched and wild entered Erne from the 12th July and ran through to Beleek (upstream of the power stations).

Northwest Mayo fishermen had the best start with their catch increasing despite gales and heavy rain and were among the first districts to reach quota. On the North West Mayo coast the portion of ranched fish in the commercial catch rose from 5 to 7% indicating good stocks were available off the Mayo coast during the third week of June. Some of these escaped to local rivers but an increasing portion were intercepted by the drift net fishery - surprisingly not in the locations expected by fishermen. The ranched component in the Belmullet and Kilcummin catches differed indicating a discrete separation of stocks - hatchery fish travelling further south along the Mayo coast separated from those destined for Donegal rivers.

Achill fishermen had a very disappointing start - a situation that only improved in late June. Here, the ranched component exceeded 20% at the end of June. By mid-July the catch still remained below that of 2001 and the portion of ranched fish dropped to 15% as the hatchery stocks moved through the fishery. Though some tags will undoubtedly be left the Bangor quota was effectively filled.

All carcass tags were issued in the Ballinakill district where drift net fishing was exceptional. In early June the Cleggan catch was well down with the ranched component also lower at ~14%. By the third week of June however the ranched fish began to appear with the portion in the local catch rising to over 25%. By mid July the ranched component peaked at 28% and then fell back to quarter of the catch as the carcass tags (~8200) ran out. The draft net fishery's allocation (~1000 tags) - a noted casualty of the weather especially in Killary Harbour were not all used up even after rivers fell in the district. The successful distribution of carcass tags here and indeed elsewhere received much praise by the industry.

All carcass tags were distributed in the Galway and Connemara districts with fishing able to continue to end of season. In Galway Bay one fisherman fished the first week for 15 salmon - two of these were fish farm escapees. Late in the second week ranched fish appeared in his catch (14%), as did more fish farm escapees (9%). The Galway district commercial catch didn't reflect the good run of salmon into the Corrib with only some 1400 fish taken to end of June. Fishing in July moved outside Galway Bay as the Corrib run slowed to a trickle - off the Aran Islands salmon were hitting nets travelling north.

On the Clare coast catches were disappointing initially but recovered well to the end of June and by mid-July less than 1000 carcass tags remained. Some fish appeared in the Clarecastle fishery at the mouth of the Fergus Fishery early in the season but further out the estuary the catch was reduced due to high winds and rain. By mid-July Clarecastle fishermen had used up most of their carcass tags as the catch improved. Here as in other districts the difficulty of redistributing issued carcass tags arose. Fishery District Committees did help in this regard. Quota remained unfilled in the Shannon district.

On the South and South West Coast the initial drop in catch (compared to last year) was even greater than the ~50% fall on the West and North West Coast. But again by the end of June a significant improvement occurred especially for Dingle fishermen where the final catch well exceeded last years. Fishing continued in Kerry right up to the last day where carcass tags were available.

In Castletownbere catches were down on 2001 but improved at the end of July. On the south coast catches were patchy - Baltimore, Timoleague, Skibereen, Youghal and Ballycotton had to wait to the end of the season to get consistent returns. Further east Helvic had good fishing. As expected in Castletownsend where salmon were caught with food in their stomachs (~25%) - fishing continued successfully right to the end of season.

A feature of the commercial season was the intelligent use of the storm (safety) day rule and the practical way it was implemented on four of the first five weeks fished. The first fisherman to use the safety day was Thomas 'Sailor' Flaherty (RIP), Renvyle who, on the second day of the season rang in to notify the WRFB of adverse conditions for draft netting the Killary. Unfortunately conditions did not improve for draft netting and after his death on the 25th May only one salmon was taken at 'The Point'. It was a similar story for draft net fishermen at Inver, and at the mouth of the Feale River who suffered most due to heavy rain and constant flooding. Low flows late in July didn't alter the situation greatly. Seal predation from nets remains a serious problem right about the coast. Their presence at the mouth of rivers also poses problems for recreational fisheries.

The late delivery of carcass tags to fishermen helped curb illegal fishing before the season opened - though some still fished despite significant activity by waterkeepers from the RFB's. Poor catches, observed in week 1 of the season, suggest that catches from earlier illegal fishing were insignificant.

Market report

With scarcity of fish initially and quota the price* paid to fishermen remained high throughout 2002. Where fish were scarce prices were well above that of 2001 especially for larger grades.

The drive by BIM to improve the quality of wild salmon sold continued - through improvements in handling, making ice available and by encouraging fishermen to bleed fish after capture. One smoker expressed the concern that bleeding fish may contribute to bruising as fish flap about on deck. Packing too many salmon into a fish box (up to 15) continues to be a problem in certain areas of the country. Insufficient ice cover and melting of ice on transport created difficulties where salmon were transported long distances.

Fish farm escapees continue to be a threat to an industry seeking to brand its product as wild. Most escapees were taken early in the season though some continued to appear later - possibly the result of harvesting operations. The portion of escapees identified in the catch remains low - Achill 1.1%, Killala the escapee portion was slightly higher at 1.8% and Ballina 0.5%. The fish farm escapees from Sligo Bay area, Achill and Galway West were all ready for harvest at ~ 2-3kg. Their condition was so good few would be recognised as farmed - the small tail was often the only give-away. Some of these escapees entered rivers - 2 were caught at Ashford Castle in Cong from an estimated catch of 560 salmon to rod. Michael Rodgers took a fine 15lb escapee at the weir in Galway by rod in mid July.

The occasional large salmon appeared in the drift net catch - a 26lb in Killala and a 17lb in Cleggan.
The long awaited return of ranched Fanad smolts from the Marine Institute's facility at Newport Co. Mayo in 1999 finally generated a 27lb biggy. The fish didn't quite make it home to the Burrishoole River instead it cruised the Killary and ended up in John Wallace's draft net on the 19th July.

Salmon arriving into Limerick from Helvic contained sand eels while mackerel were found in salmon processed at Timoleague. Salmon with food in their stomachs require immediate processing to avoid spoilage.