Salmon and recreational fisheries monitoring: traps

Spring Emigrants (Smolts)

Dataset available for download here: http://dx.doi.org/10.7489/1017-1

In the case of the Deeside traps, emigrants leaving between January and May are considered to be smolts. Peak emigration rates occur in April and are dominated by 2 or 3-year old smolts. However, emigrant age classes can range from 1 to 5 years. Juvenile salmon emigrating in the spring will typically enter the sea in early summer (see Malcolm et al. [2015] for further information on Scottish smolt emigration times and sizes).

Smolt numbers exhibit substantial inter-annual variability (Fig 1.), but have remained relatively constant over time at both the Girnock and Baddoch. A detailed analysis of trends in the number and age composition of migrants from the Girnock Burn is provided by Gurney et al. (2008).

Figure 1. Girnock and Baddoch spring emigrant counts by year