These bulletin blogs represent news about Finavon and the South Esk, and my views as a riparian owner. While I may digress at times to write about other places, these are not the views of any other organisation, nor are they designed to promote the interests of any individual or organisation other than Finavon Castle Water and factors affecting the fishery. Tony Andrews
Although the temperature hasn’t dropped – yet, the leaves, dessicated by the dry summer, have started to fall into the river, making fishing an irritation at times. There are a few fish about, less than we might have expected in the circumstances. Many anglers were hoping that the long drought might have held back fish, so that when the first flood arrived, as it did (briefly) last week, there would be an in-rush of salmon into the pools. We all hoped for silver MSW autumn salmon, but what we got was a few rather coloured fish which had probably been hunkered down in some of the lower river pools.
We have seen a few salmon, all coloured, caught and returned. My guess is that many fish will have arrived off the coast earlier in the season and either were predated or netted, legally or illegally, and some may have died from stress before entering the river. While there may be a late autumn run, I think encouragement of a consistent level of cool, fresh water flowing into the sea at Montrose will be the deciding factor. But of course that is pure speculation, and is not supported by data.
South Esk Tagging Project
I have just heard that two salmon were tagged at sea in April 2013 and were later recorded as having entered the Spey! Given that only 38 fish were tagged at sea, and a further 22 in fresh water at Upper Kinnaird on the South Esk, these two Spey fish represent a sizeable proportion of fish ‘belonging’ to the Spey being caught by Usan Fisheries. We don’t really need any more evidence that the impact of Usan nets is probably affecting all east coast rivers, including ‘the rivers in-between’ (see the bulletin for 22 September).
Perhaps the inclusion of the Spey will add weight to the powerful argument that mixed stocks netting has had its day, and that it is impossible to manage Scotland’s wild salmon effectively while the practice continues.
Tagging for 2013 is now complete with 38 salmon tagged at sea after capture in the Usan nets, and 22 in the South Esk after being caught in a net trap positioned in the Arn Pool at Upper Kinnaird. It is a pity that no contract was agreed between the Government and Usan Fisheries to continue tagging into the month of May. This I understand was for commercial reasons, presumably because Messers Pullar did not want disruption to their extremely valuable May netting.
As I mentioned in mid April, May is now the most prolific month for spring salmon on the South Esk. In years gone by it was April that saw the main run, but that has changed. We will therefore not get the data we need to find out where our May-run spring salmon spawn and where their progeny have their nursery areas. That is a pity, and I suggest is against the public interest. In other words, that contract with Usan Fisheries should in my opinion have been demanded and signed. After all, we are talking about a national and natural resource here, and we all are involved (or should be) in protecting it for future generations.
So, how many salmon are now in the South Esk catchment, as revealed by recordings on the positioned static receivers?
22 salmon were tagged in fresh water at Kinnaird
13 tags remain below the dyke (some which have been regurgitated and are now sitting on the bed of the river)
6 salmon have crossed the Kinnaird dyke
1 salmon is already in Glen Clova
4 are unaccounted for
24 radio-tagged salmon, including the 2 netted at sea, now appear to be in the South Esk, which is more than at any time in 2012
38 salmon were tagged at sea in Usan nets
2 entered the South Esk
1 entered the Tay
7 entered the North Esk
2 entered the Spey
26 are as yet unaccounted for.
These 60 fish are the baseline for the 2013 tracking exercise whose objectives are:
1. To find out where South Esk springers spawn
2. To find out which rivers the Usan nets are (lethally) exploiting
Of the 22 early season salmon caught in the Marine Scotland net in the Arn Pool at Upper Kinnaird we now know that some tags were regurgitated and later recovered, and that some 6 fish triggered the Bridge of Dun receiver as they left the river, so we may have a dozen fish to give us the data we need to establish where the spring salmon spawn and where their progeny spend the pre smolt part of their lives. Not a very robust sample.
TA 8/10/13
