Provisional Salmon Fishery Statistics - 2013 Season

Catch & Effort Reported by Scottish Salmon Fisheries in 2013

Figure 1 Rod and line fishery.

The rod and line fishery

13,269 wild salmon and grilse were reported caught and retained in the rod and line fishery. A further 53,118 wild salmon and grilse were reported caught and released. The combined retained and released rod catch was 74% of the previous 5-year average.

There are no comprehensive time series of fishing effort data associated with the rod and line fishery.

Trends in rod and line catch are shown in Figure1. The total rod catch (retained and released) has shown a slight increase since records began in 1952 which, together with the decline in the net fisheries, has resulted in the rod and line catch comprising 73% of the total Scottish catch in 2013 compared to 11% in 1952. In 2013, rod fisheries accounted for 35% of the all methods retained catch.

Trends in total rod catch vary among individual stock components. Reported catch of spring salmon (for the purposes of this report defined as multi sea-winter fish taken before 1 May) shows a general decline since records began and, although there is some indication that spring salmon catch has stabilised in recent years, it remains at a historically low level. Overall catch of salmon and grilse in later months, on the other hand, has generally increased over the same period.

Figure 2 Catch and release, rod and line fishery.

Catch and release

The proportion of the rod catch accounted for by catch and release has generally increased since 1994, when such information was first recorded. In 2013, 80% of the annual rod catch was released compared to less than 8% in 1994. Similarly, less than 1% of rod caught spring salmon were released in 1994 while 92% were released in 2013 ( Figure 2).

The net fisheries

16,732 wild salmon and grilse were reported caught and retained in the fixed engine fishery, and the national index of netting effort was 238 trap months. 7,579 wild salmon and grilse were reported caught and retained in the net & coble fishery, while the reported effort was 57 crew months.

Reported catch and effort have declined in both net fisheries over much of the period covered by our records and remain at historically low levels. Fishing effort in the fixed engine and net & coble fisheries were respectively the sixth lowest and lowest since records began in 1952. Catches in these fisheries were 7% and 3% of the maxima recorded in the respective time series.