Galloway Fisheries Trust

 

Kirkcowan Angling Competition

Posted: 19th July 2010

Each year the Galloway Fisheries Trusts hold Kirkcowan’s annual angling competition on the River Bladnoch. All entrants to meet at Craighlaw Arms in Kirkcowan main street at 8am Saturday 14 August where beats will be allocated. Prize giving held at same place at 6pm. Entry Fee £6 Adult, £3 Juniors.

GREAT PRIZES TO BE WON - FREE BUFFET FOR ENTRANTS!!

Entry – Contact the Galloway Fisheries Trust office; call 01671 403011, e-mail mail@gallowayfisheriestrust.org, or click here to contact us directly through the website. Alternatively, find the entry sheet in the Craighlaw Arms, Kirkcowan before, or on, the day.

Time: 8:00am to 6:00pm
Date: 14 August 2010
Location: Kirkcowan - River Bladnoch

Encouraging Eel Numbers

Posted: 19th July 2010

An apparent significant decrease in the eel population in river systems is currently a major concern all over Britain. It is therefore very encouraging to see, during this summer electrofishing, a good number of eels in smaller burns throughout the Galloway catchments. Many of these small burns would not normally be surveyed but due to proposed wind farms, they are being assessed to understand possible environmental impact.

To help protect eels the Galloway Fisheries Trust helped write a Solway and Tweed Eel Management Plan. One key action of the plan was to get eels back into the Kirkcudbrightshire Dee catchment. A trap will be installed at the bottom of Tongland Fish Ladder which is presently impassable to eels. This will help with their journey upstream which they find difficult at present. This will be installed in the near future.

GFT goes tree planting

Posted: 15th July 2010

Each spring GFT undertake riparian tree planting on most river catchments in Galloway. Planting these native trees provides bankside protection and improves habitat for many different species such as Salmon, trout, and invertebrate’s. This year GFT planted trees in large wooden tree guards on the Cree catchment and the Urr catchment. These were planted on the banks of the Green Burn that flows off Drigmorn Hill into the Penkiln Burn (River Cree) and on the banks of the Crogo Burn, a main tributary to the River Urr.

Usually we plant our trees in plastic tubes that are zip tied to wooden stakes. This is done within fenced off parts of the river bank, however on these particular areas of the Green Burn and Crogo Burn there are no bankside fences as overgrazing is not a problem.

GFT felt that it would be more cost effective to build large wooden guards than to fence off the burns. The trees that were planted in the guards were 1.2m in height, unlike our usual 40cm trees. We believe that these mature trees will grow perfectly protected by these guards and will hopefully be doing their job in many years to come. GFT are planning to use the wooden tree guard design on other watercourses in our future tree planting sites.

This work was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) as part of the Sulwath Connection Project.

Japanese Knotweed Control

Posted: 10th May 2010

Highly invasive Japanese knotweed causes substantial economic and environmental damage. Concerns have been raised in recent years by local river users, landowners and conservation and angling groups, about the impact that this plant is having. Problems associated with Japanese knotweed on the Cree include loss of access, exclusion of native plant species, degradation of fish habitat and increased erosion of the banks.

Due to the immense negative impacts, Japanese knotweed is proscribed under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and it is an offense to introduce this plant into the wild or aid its spread. Japanese knotweed spreads vegetatively – by extensive underground roots or by movement of off-cuts and contaminated soil. A new plant can grow from a root fragment or piece of main stem as small as a thumb nail. Strimming this plant is certainly not advised!

In 2009 the Galloway Fisheries Trust began a four year program of eradication of Japanese knotweed on the banks of the Lower Cree utilising herbicides (suitable for use near water courses). This work forms part of the River Cree rare fish project, a three year project, part funded by Esmee Fairbairn and the Tubney Environmental Trust, concentrating on the conservation, protection and enhancement of sparling, lamprey, shad and spring running Atlantic salmon.

The second year of Japanese knotweed spraying will soon begin. However, the success of this control effort is dependent on the willingness of people to report stands of Japanese knotweed, and considering the ability of this plant to spread, it requires the willingness of all landowners and contractors to take responsibility for local Japanese knotweed infestations.

You can report the sighting of an invasive species on www.invasivespeciesscotland.org.uk.

How can I identify Japanese knotweed?
Japanese knotweed can grow up to 3m tall. It has bamboo-like red stems which form a zig-zag pattern between nodes. The leaves are green and tear-shaped with a flat base. In the summer sprays of small white flowers are present. During the winter the plant dies down and only the dead stems and root crown remain. For more information on identifying this, and other invasive species, see the ID sheets on https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/nonnativespecies.

Dumfries & Galloway Wildlife Festival

Posted: 13th April 2010

The 7th Dumfries and Galloway Wildlife Festival has just begun. Over 60 events will take place between 2 – 18 April – see www.wildlifefestival.org.uk.

GFT is holding two 'Fish Up Close' events 11 am – 12.30pm on the 9th and 16th April. There will be a tour of our wild salmon hatchery near Wigtown, a guided tour round an operational rainbow trout farm and an opportunity to see the various other fish species that live in the River Bladnoch. The event is free but you must book places through GFT.

Help Needed Urgently

Posted: 26th March 2010

The 5th Edition of the Forests and Water Guidelines are presently out for consultation (until the 9th April 2010). We finally really need to get to grips with the acidification problem that so limits the fish stocks of the Galloway rivers. The draft document, UKFS Water Consultation Draft for Public Consultation: February 2010, is very good at addressing the various negative impacts which forestry can have on watercourses apart from acidification again. It is recognised that where the underlying soils/geology are poorly buffered then the presence of extensive areas of sitka spruce forest can greatly exacerbated the acidification of surrounding watercourses (due to various processes).

At present the only process available to control the new planting and replanting of conifer trees in areas which are poorly buffered (i.e. where the soils are unable to neutralise any acidity) are the Forests and Water Guidelines. The process which has been used in the guidelines has been the Critical Load Analysis (CLA) which is described as 'the critical load is defined as the maximum load of a pollutant that an ecosystem can tolerate without suffering adverse change'. This sounds good in principle but we have found to date that it has not protected watercourses which are now too acidified to allow a natural salmon population to survive and on the catchments of these acidified burns conifers continue to be planted.

In Dumfries and Galloway acidification is a major limiting factor on the fish populations of the River Bladnoch, Cree, Water of Fleet, Kirkcudbrightshire Dee and to a lesser degree the Luce. Recent SEPA data (which also incorporates GFT fish data) found a total of 242.4 km of running water in these catchments (only includes the main river and named tributaries on 1:50 000 map) considered to be acidified.

This is made up of:
Bladnoch catchment - 75.24 km
Cree catchment - 82.93 km
Fleet catchment - 28.24 km
Dee catchment - 55.94 km

Although most of the acidification in Scotland is concentrated in Galloway there are various other areas across Scotland where acidification is a problem which has been exacerbated by large scale afforestation (in particular Ayrshire, Argyll, Arran and Forth). It is likely that it is more widespread than presently recorded as in the past SEPA classification did not downgrade a water on pH alone.

The new guidelines have a different layout compared to previous ones which I think is confusing. For the most important 8 Water Factors (i.e. the key issues where forestry may impact on the water environment) each is discussed, the link to forestry explained BUT the key points are distilled out and presented as guidance documents (see page 30).

From the draft guidelines we wish to make the following points:

• while points 80 - 83 describe well the process of acidification there are a few points we would disagree with i.e. point 81 states 'leading to significant improvements in water chemistry across much of the uplands'.
• the process of assessing whether new conifer planting or restocking conifers could cause acidification is once again suggested as being the Critical Load Analysis (CLA) only (point 84) - there is sadly no recognition of the use of biological data. As we know CLA has been a let down for years in regard to controlling conifer planting in sensitive locations.
• Points 86 - 88 suggest management options to improve pH levels which are all useful but very minor and there is no suggestion of changing tree species (e.g. use native tree species instead of sitka), deforestation or delaying the replanting process.
• Page 32 covers 'Guidelines' and gives 7 WG which are again useful and require to be considered if SEPA identify the water body as having an acidification issue. This is good as SEPA use biological data and chemical data to classify whether a water body is acidified. But again if it is considered to be acidified then it is only CLA (as mentioned in WG1/WG2/WG3) which limits tree planting and as stated before we do not feel CLA is fit for purpose at present. Again WG1/WG2 sound good but in Galloway even the most acidified waters very rarely ever fail CLA thus replanting always takes place.

The main problem with the guidelines is a severe lack of information on the CLA process. We have been informed that the process of CLA will be changed to some degree to meet with our concerns but worryingly the 'guidance documents' which are meant to be provided to advise how CLA should be implemented and how it may have been changed from previous guidelines have not been provided at the same time as the guideline document! This makes it impossible to comment properly on the guidelines!

GFT would suggest that each letter should be relatively short and concise as there is not a lot to comment on at this stage. The most important points that need to be included are:

• that acidification has had a real impact on the fish stocks in your river (where possible give personal examples).
• where possible say that this has had an economic cost to you.
• that you have little faith in the present Critical Load Analysis (CLA) methodology due to the lack of recovery of fish stocks.
• that you feel that EU legislation (in particular the Water Frame Work Directive) (and if you are from the Bladnoch, the Habitats Directive) is being ignored or contravened by allowing the replanting of conifers in areas known to be acidified.
• that you are unable to comment in detail due to the lack of detail on the 'practical guide' regarding acidification but that you wish to be involved in the future consultation process regarding the 'practical guide'.
• you may also wish to comment on the points that I have bullet pointed earlier in the email.

The consultation responses should be addressed to Richard Howe, Forestry Commission, 231 Corstorphine Road, Edinburgh or amanda.campbell@forestry.gsi.gov.uk.

I would strongly recommend that all the responses are copied into:

• SEPA (Ross Doughty, SEPA, 5 Redwood Crescent, Peel Park, East KilbrideG74 5PP)
• SNH (Andrew Thin, SNH Chairman, Great Glen House, Leachkin Road, Inverness, IV3 8NW)
• Roseanna Cunningham MSP (The Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh, EH99 1SP)
• Alex Fergusson MSP (The Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh, EH99 1SP)

Please make sure you to input to this consultation before 9th April 2010!

Salmon in the Classroom 2010

Posted: 22nd February 2010

During February and March, Galloway Fisheries Trust (GFT) is running the “Salmon in the Classroom” project. This year, Garlieston, Sorbie, St. Ninians, Sheuchan, Kirkcudbright and Twynholm Primary Schools are taking part and by mid-March, stages one and two of the project will be completed.

The first stage begins this week and involves a GFT fishery biologist visiting the classroom to give a short presentation covering the key aspects of the salmon lifecycle. At the end of the presentation, the children are shown their hatchery equipment (including a tank) and once set up; 100 salmon eggs are left for the children to rear within their school.

Usually within a couple of weeks, the eggs hatch and stage two of the project takes place. The biologist returns to the school to take the children to the river or burn where the parent fish (that provided the eggs) came from. The young fish (or alevins) are released and the children are involved in a brief discussion about the watercourse and the first stage of the project. From here, the class accompanies the biologist in a visit to the GFT hatchery where they see many thousands of wild salmon eggs and alevin before being given a tour of a trout farm (to learn of other ways in which fisheries can support the local economy).

Stage three takes place during summer and will be reported on later in the year.

For more information, see www.snh.org.uk/salmonintheclassroom/

Preserving salmon on Galloway’s spring-running rivers

Posted: 22nd February 2010

A number of Solway Rivers still support a spring run of salmon, most notably the River Bladnoch and River Cree to the west of Galloway. It has always been important that we encourage preserving this unique sub-group of salmon (large multi-sea-wintered salmon, often females, able to produce over 7000 eggs which are deposited in upper reaches of the catchment in areas often impacted by acidification and habitat damage) but even more-so following a national decline in salmon returning to our rivers last year.

In 2009, annual catches on rivers across Scotland were down by about a third on previous years; mainly thought to be the result of a poor grilse (1-sea-wintered-salmon) run during the summer months. Fortunately for Galloway, a good degree of catch and release was undertaken on salmon caught in the early part of the season. This will have helped maintain numbers of at least the spring component of our local salmon populations but being unable to foresee what this season will bring; means it is imperative that we continue to catch and release salmon throughout the coming season.

Galloway Fisheries Trust (GFT) have been running a catch and release initiative with support from Annan based Pinneys of Scotland (part of The Seafood Company) who have provided sides of smoked salmon as a reward for anglers who return a spring salmon up until the 1st of June. This project will continue this year. To be rewarded, Galloway Fisheries Trust ask that a scale sample and details of length or weight are taken from the salmon before its release. If possible and in the company of another person, GFT ask that a photo is also provided of the salmon held in both hands before or during its release (see photo of a Cree springer being released last year). For more details and to be sent a scale packet, please contact the Galloway Fisheries Trust on 01671 40 3011. Rivers involved in the rewards scheme include the River Bladnoch (now open), the River Urr which opens on the 24th February and the River Cree which opens on the 1st of March.

Summer Electrofishing Underway

Posted: 19th July 2010

On the 6th July, electrofishing got underway with dry weather and low water making for ideal conditions. Electrofishing is carried out in the summer months from July to the end of September as it allows time for juvenile Salmon and Trout to grow large enough to be captured efficiently and water temperatures are suitable. It is also the best time to hopefully get low flow conditions.

Electrofishing has stopped for now until river levels drop again.

Salmon in the Classroom

Posted: 24th June 2010

Primary schools taking part in this years Salmon in the Classroom project (run locally by the Galloway Fisheries Trust) are currently completing the third and final part of the project. Having raised and released 100 salmon as alevins in the spring; the class now return to the site to oversee their fish being captured using a technique called electrofishing.

Primary 2’s from Kirkcudbright Primary School were the first of six classes to complete the project on Monday and can be seen pictured handling salmon, trout and eels caught from the Malzie Burn on the Bladnoch. Garlieston, Sorbie, Twynholm, Sheuchan and St. Ninians Primary Schools are also taking part this year. For more information on the project, please see www.snh.org.uk/salmonintheclassroom/ or to sign up for next years project, contact the GFT on 01671 40 3011.

Celtic Sea Trout Project Update

Posted: 21st June 2010

Last year in the 2009 News Archive - ‘Help the Sea Trout’ - the Celtic Sea Trout Project was introduced. This project which includes the Border Esk, Fleet, Luce and Cree is now well underway with a number of scale samples already collected. Again we are calling on anglers and nets men to get involved as we now require more in depth samples to be collected. This requirement means that as well as scale samples we would also like the guts and head retained whenever a sea trout is killed. By having this, more in depth analysis can be carried out on each individual fish.

Any angler or nets man who is interested in helping out with this project should get in touch with the trust and we can provide full information packs as well as scale packets, bags and labels for storing samples. Many of these packs have been distributed to fishery interests. Please remember we are also interested in scale samples from herling. This project can only work if anglers collect samples from their sear trout catches – please help!.

Salmon project goes swimmingly in Europe

Posted: 8th June 2010

Action to tackle the decline of Atlantic salmon in a number of Scotland’s major salmon rivers has been chosen as one of the five best nature projects in Europe.

The Conservation of Atlantic Salmon in Scotland (CASS) project was set up to significantly improve the freshwater habitat of the fish in eight rivers, including the Bladnoch, Dee, Tweed, Tay and Spey. This follows concerns about the drop in the numbers of salmon in Scottish rivers in recent years as a result of habitat damage, over-exploitation, water quality and quantity and high mortality during their time at sea.

The project was part-funded by LIFE, a European Commission programme that supports environmental and nature conservation projects throughout Europe.

Over four years more than 200 practical actions were taken on the ground to help reverse the decline. The removal of man-made 25 obstacles in rivers and streams opened up 150km of salmon habitat, allowing salmon to return to parts of river systems that had been inaccessible for many years. Over 70,000 square metres of spawning habitat in streams was restored to allow the salmon to release their eggs. Commercial salmon netting was also halted on one river and another two rivers were restocked with wild fish. Along river banks 76km of fencing was put up to stop erosion by grazing cattle, trees were coppiced to increase the amount of light, conifers removed and native trees planted. To help raise awareness of the damage that can be done to salmon spawning habitat by gravel extraction, a code of practice was produced. And ‘Salmon in the Classroom’, an education project set up to help school children learn about salmon, is still running in schools across the country.

Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) coordinated the remarkable partnership that brought together eight District Salmon Fisheries Boards, responsible for managing the salmon fisheries in each river, with statutory agencies, government departments, research institutes, commercial companies and local authorities.

The Scottish project received the Best of the Best LIFE Nature award at a ceremony held in Brussels on 31 May, along with four others from Sweden, Portugal and Austria. All five were chosen from a list of 73 LIFE projects that were completed in 2009.

Denise Reed from SNH said: “Scotland is a stronghold for the Atlantic salmon in Europe and several of our rivers rank among the most famous for salmon fishing in the world. From both conservation and a fisheries perspective it was vital to work together to do what we could to stop the decline of salmon.

“With 17 partners, our project had more than any other LIFE nature project - it’s a great example of everyone pulling together to reach a common goal.

We’ve achieved a lot for salmon conservation in Scotland, but hearing that we were in the top five projects in Europe was the icing on the cake - we are absolutely delighted.”

Andrew Wallace, Managing Director of the Association of Salmon Fishery Boards and the Rivers and Fisheries Trusts of Scotland, commented: “It is extremely encouraging that the CASS project has received such praise and has been recognised as one of the best LIFE bids in the EU. This project was a classic example of the public and private sectors playing to their strengths, working together to produce a result that not only assisted the conservation of one of Scotland's most important flagship species, but also one that supports a £100m industry employing 2500 people in the rural economy.”

Angelo Salsi, the Head of the LIFE Nature Unit said: “The CASS project shows what a dedicated partnership and a well-managed LIFE Nature project can do to reverse the decline in biodiversity. It exceeded its objectives, reopening over 150 km of rivers to the Atlantic salmon. As a result, salmon are now returning to rivers where they have not been seen for as much as 250 years!”.

Loch Ken Crayfish Work

Posted: 26th April 2010

North American Signal Crayfish (ASC) is an Invasive Non-Native alien invertebrate which has become established in many UK waters. There are many concerns of their impacts due to their burrowing, competing with fish for habitat, grazing pressure on aquatic plants and predation on invertebrates, fish and fish eggs. ASC are detailed in the Species Action Framework as one of the 6 non-native species identified as posing a great threat to native biodiversity.

While ASC have populated much of England, their distribution in Scotland is still fairly limited. Work in 2009 found them established in 58 km of river length in Scotland. In Dumfries and Galloway the first record of ASC was in two tributaries of the Kirkcudbrightshire Dee in 1996. By 2004 crayfish were present in the Water of Dee (between Loch Ken and Glenlee) and were starting to be reported as a nuisance by anglers in Loch Ken. In recent years, there have been increasing numbers of complaints from Loch Ken anglers about ASC. The crayfish population in Loch Ken is the largest in Scotland and there are grave concerns what impact this is having on the fish populations.

In 2009 funding was secured by Marine Scotland to undertake a 5 month research project to increase the understanding of the Loch Ken crayfish population and to investigate possible control trapping. GFT acted as project managers, Deefish undertook the trapping and a multi-agency steering group oversaw the project. Click here to see the Executive Summary of the project findings.

Your help needed in a study of lamprey in the River Cree. Spring and Summer 2010

Posted: 24th March 2010

Lamprey are an ancient group of animals that play an important role in the ecology of a healthy river. As part of the River Cree rare fish project, GFT are working on all three species found in Scotland, brook, river and sea lamprey. In particular this project aims to locate and map sensitive lamprey spawning and juvenile habitats so measures can be taken to ensure their protection. This will involve electrofishing in silt beds for juveniles and searching suitable areas of gravel and pebble for spawning lamprey in the lower and mid River Cree over late spring and summer. In addition, anecdotal evidence suggests that the number of fish with scars from lamprey attacks has been declining and GFT are trying to compile reports of scars and wounds on fish, caused by lamprey.

To investigate the numbers of lamprey moving up the River Cree, lamprey traps will soon be introduced into the Cree. This will also allow genetic samples to be taken from the lamprey for management, and to contribute to a PhD project being run from the University of Glasgow.

How you can help

1) If you see spawning or nest building lamprey please let us know as quickly as possible. Take a note of the location and if you can, try to estimate the number and size of the lamprey and if possible take a picture. However, please try not to disturb them!

2) If you catch a fish that shows evidence of a lamprey attack, please let us know. This usually takes the form of a relatively circular and concave wound or healed scar. If possible, take photographs with a scale (e.g. a ruler or a coin) of the whole fish and a close up of the scar or wound. We can identify whether the mark was made by a river or sea lamprey by its size.

3) Any lamprey traps being run by GFT will be labeled as GFT property. However, if you see any objects in the lower river of which you are suspicious, please check with GFT before disturbing.

Helping the sea trout on the Skyre Burn

Posted: 2nd March 2010

GFT and the Fleet District Salmon Fishery Board have been monitoring the Skyre Burn closely to address concerns of falling sea trout numbers. During early 2009 the Trust approached Amey to discuss various options regarding the wide and flat bridge apron under the A75 road bridge. The low river flow acts as a barrier to sea trout due to the water being too shallow. Amey’s Environmental Team worked with GFT to consider how to address the problem and allow easy access for sea trout.

Amey, on behalf of Transport Scotland, manage and maintain the bridge, as it forms part of the A75 trunk road network. All parties agreed the best solution would be to dig out a channel which would allow a constant level of water deep enough for sea trout to access through. The actual works undertaken were undertaken by Chalmers Construction Ltd, overseen by GFT and was funded through the Sulwath Connections Project (which is supported through the Heritage Lottery Fund & SNH) between December and January.

Gordon Allan, associate director for Amey’s consulting division said:
“At Amey we pride ourselves on our dedication to training our staff. Over the past few years we have established and grown our Environmental Team and to successfully work with GFT to provide a solution for the GFT is testament to the work the team is capable of taking forward. We have now been approached by other agencies to provide similar advice.”

Jamie Ribbens, GFT senior biologist said:
“GFT and the Fleet DSFB are pleased to have worked closely with the Amey’s Environmental Team to address this problematic bridge apron. These works are an integral part of a range of measures being undertaken to restore the important sea trout population back to the Skyre Burn.”

Galloway Fisheries Trust

Fisheries House, Station Industrial Estate, Newton Stewart, Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland. DG8 6ND
Telephone: 01671 403011      Fax: 01671 402248      E-mail: mail@gallowayfisheriestrust.org
Scottish Registered Charity No. SC020751

 

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