Salmon stocks are being hit by the effects of climate change in Northern Ireland, with scientists on the River Bush in north Antrim discovering the warmer winters are triggering a false start to the annual migration, with major consequences. Believing it is springtime, the young fish are leaving the safety of the river and heading out to sea where many perish. Richard Kennedy, a scientist at the Bush Salmon Station, said the timing of the migration of young fish is crucial to their chance of survival. "Ten years ago the first smolt that would have left the River Bush would have done so towards the middle to the end of April, but this seems to be changing and now first departures can be as early as the beginning of March."
Usually around a third of the young fish that leave the River Bush survive and return the following year to spawn. But with warmer winters triggering a false start to the migration, only six in every 100 are currently making it back. Climate change is also hitting the salmon in other ways, with high rainfall swelling the river in winter and early spring, which is washing the delicate salmon fry away.
In similar news, hundreds of fish have been killed in a pollution incident in County Antrim, which occurred on 24 - 25 February at Threemilewater River in Whiteabbey. Members of the local angling club said the whole river had been affected and it could take up to four years to get the fish stocks back. The exact cause of the pollution has yet to be determined.
