It is well established that the numbers of Atlantic salmon returning to Scottish rivers are declining, and that this is part of a pattern across the whole of their natural range. In response, the Scottish Government and stakeholders have introduced a range of voluntary and mandatory measures to enhance and protect salmon stocks, many of which are also likely to benefit sea trout and other freshwater fish. These measures include restrictions on the fishing season, on retaining fish and mitigation of pressures such as sea lice and rising river temperatures.

Each year, Marine Directorate scientists assess the status of 173 salmon stocks across Scotland, resulting in individual rivers being graded as being in good (category 1), moderate (2), or poor (3) conservation status. Fisheries on poor conservation status rivers must return all salmon caught in order to help preserve stocks. Whilst salmon can be retained on rivers in good or moderate conservation status, more than 95% of all rod-caught salmon in Scotland are returned to the river.

The main source of information on how many adult fish return to each river are salmon fisheries, who have a legal requirement to make an annual catch return to Scottish Ministers. This information is then collated by the Marine Directorate and published as Official Statistics each Spring. As not every returning salmon is caught, other information is required to understand how catches relate to the numbers of adults returning from the ocean to spawn. To provide this information, some rivers have equipment installed on them to allow semi-automated fish counting. In July and August this year, the Marine Directorate and the Helmsdale District Salmon Fishery Board have had the fish counter on the River Helmsdale refurbished to help ensure the continued provision of this valuable data.

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