The Moray Firth Tracking Project
It’s time to solve the mystery of our missing salmon
© Ben Etridge
Somewhere on their journey, wild salmon numbers are being decimated. For every 100 salmon that leave our rivers for the sea, less than five return – a decline of nearly 70% in just 25 years.
The warning is stark. If this trend continues, one of our most iconic species could become endangered in our lifetime.
Important Information
Our priority at the Atlantic Salmon Trust is to safeguard the people who work with us – either as staff or one of the myriad of volunteers that kindly donate so much of their time.
As such we have had to take the decision to postpone our two tracking projects for 2020.
However, it is only a pausing of these projects, as we will back in time for next year’s spring smolt run so that we can better understand what is happening to these young bars of silver. Read this statement by our Chief Executive Officer, Mark Bilsby, in full by clicking here.
© Ben Etridge
The Moray Firth Tracking Project
The Moray Firth Tracking Project is the largest acoustic tracking project for salmon in Europe and will track smolts further than ever before. The tagging project launched in Spring 2019 in the Moray Firth – the route taken by 20% of all salmon that leave the UK. The lessons learned from the study in the Moray Firth and the 7 project rivers will provide valuable insights that are transferable to other populations of salmon around the UK.
What needs to be done?
We must take action on a scale never seen before in order to identify and prove what is happening to wild salmon and determine how to halt this species’ decline. Put simply, if we can find out what is happening on the salmon’s journey from the headwaters of the rivers to the sea, we can take steps to help increase survival.
The task at hand is momentous but the action needed is perfectly clear. We urgently need to know:
What are the migration pathways our smolts use?
How do we quantify the major impacts on their mortality during their migration
How to improve their survival rate so more fish return?
It’s easy for many to speculate on the cause of wild salmon’s decline, but unfounded speculation cannot and will not solve this problem.
What do we know so far?
What’s Next?
Our scientific team are working tirelessly to analyse over 15 million data points that will allow us to better understand what is happening to these smolts on their journey to sea. This evidence will provide vital information and identify who, or what, is responsible for our smolts to go ‘Missing in Action’.
We appreciate that supporters are eager to learn more about the Moray Firth Tracking Project. When we have more information we will share this with you.
What can you do to help? It’s vital that we raise the funds needed to carry out The Moray Firth Tracking Project to help us understand what is preventing wild salmon from returning to our rivers and give our generation the opportunity to save the species before it’s too late. Please support the Atlantic Salmon Trust by donating here.
Your questions answered
Since the launch of the Moray Firth Tracking Project, lots of people have been wondering ‘Why start the project on the Moray Firth?’ as well as some other important questions which we have addressed here. It’s time to solve the mystery of the missing salmon.
The Missing Salmon Alliance
The MSA is comprised of the following members:
Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, Atlantic Salmon Trust, and the Angling Trust with Fish Legal
https://www.missingsalmonalliance.org
