Research and analysis

Salmonid and fisheries statistics for England and Wales 2020

Published 23 September 2021

Applies to England and Wales

This report provides a summary of the declared catches of salmon, sea trout, eels, smelt and lamprey by rods, nets and other fishing instruments for 2020. It covers England, Wales and the Border Esk in Scotland.

See the full Salmonid and freshwater fisheries data tables.

The Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales use catch return data to assess and manage salmon and sea trout stocks in a sustainable way.

The catch data represents declared catches for 2020. You should not accept it as a definitive record of the total numbers of fish landed.

1. Status of salmon and sea trout stocks

The 2020 assessment of salmon stocks in England and Wales shows that the status of salmon populations continues to be of concern. The assessment places each rivers’ salmon stock into 1 of 4 categories with the strongest classed as ‘not at risk’ and the weakest as ‘at risk’.

In England:

• 37 of 42 principal salmon rivers were assessed as being ‘at risk’ or ‘probably at risk’
• one was categorised as ‘not at risk’

In Wales:

• all 22 principal salmon rivers were assessed as being ‘at risk’ or ‘probably at risk’
• none were categorised as ‘not at risk’

State of 64 principal salmon rivers in England and Wales 2020

Salmon rivers in England and Wales are assessed against a management objective.

The management objective is the probability of a river’s salmon population exceeding its conservation limit in 4 years out of 5. The conservation limit is the minimum spawning stock level below which stocks should not be allowed to fall.

Figure 1: Salmon stock status in England 2020

Status	Percentage of stock
Not at risk	2%
Probably not at risk	10%
Probably at risk	40%
At risk	48%

Figure 2: Salmon stock status in Wales 2020

Status	Percentage of stock
Probably at risk	32%
At risk	68%

Figure 3: Percentage of principal salmon rivers in each risk category assessed against the management objective, for 2006 to 2020 and as predicted for 2025 for rivers in England

Year	Not at risk	Probably not at risk	Probably at risk	At risk
2006	21%	19%	21%	38%
2007	21%	21%	17%	40%
2008	24%	33%	7%	36%
2009	14%	31%	24%	31%
2010	26%	21%	19%	33%
2011	24%	24%	29%	24%
2012	17%	29%	29%	26%
2013	14%	17%	31%	38%
2014	0%	10%	67%	24%
2015	0%	19%	52%	29%
2016	0%	10%	57%	33%
2017	0%	14%	64%	21%
2018	0%	10%	62%	29%
2019	0%	7%	36%	57%
2020	2%	10%	40%	48%
2025 prediction	0%	10%	55%	36%

Note: percentage of principal salmon rivers in each risk category assessed against the management objective.

Figure 4: Percentage of principal salmon rivers in each risk category assessed against the management objective, for 2006 to 2020 and as predicted for 2025 for rivers in Wales

Year	Not at risk	Probably not at risk	Probably at risk	At risk
2006	9%	18%	18%	55%
2007	5%	27%	14%	55%
2008	9%	23%	32%	36%
2009	5%	23%	32%	41%
2010	9%	14%	36%	41%
2011	9%	23%	18%	50%
2012	9%	14%	27%	50%
2013	5%	9%	18%	68%
2014	0%	0%	50%	50%
2015	0%	5%	45%	50%
2016	0%	5%	45%	50%
2017	0%	5%	50%	45%
2018	0%	0%	45%	55%
2019	0%	0%	27%	73%
2020	0%	0%	32%	68%
2025 prediction	0%	0%	50%	50%

Note: percentage of principal salmon rivers in each risk category assessed against the management objective.

2. Rod and net licence catch returns

The Environment Agency sent a total of 107,130 catch return reminders to salmon and sea trout licence holders. Reminders stated that licence holders must submit their catch returns at the end of the season (by 1 January). This is a requirement even if no fish are caught.

For net catch returns, 98% of logbooks were accounted for in 2020.

The total returns received for the 2020 season was 19,794 (69% of the total licences issued).

The Environment Agency introduced an updated online catch return service in 2018. The number and percentage of paper and online catch returns is shown in table 1.

Table 1: Number and percentage of paper and online catch returns, 2017 to 2020

Year	Total returns	Paper returns	Paper (%)	Online returns	Online (%)
2017	20,772	7,182	35%	13,590	65%
2018	20,736	5,239	25%	15,497	75%
2019	23,539	4,974	21%	18,565	79%
2020	19,794	3,531	18%	16,263	82%

3. National overview and summary of main findings

Table 2: England and Wales summary of declared salmon and sea trout rod catches in 2020 showing % change on 2019 and the 5-year mean (2015 to 2019)

Rods	2020	2019	5-year mean (2015 to 2019)	% change 2020 on 2019	% change 2020 on 5-year mean
Licences issued*	28,758	31,099	31,319	-8%	-8%
Days declared* fished	107,776	125,297	131,308	-14%	-18%
Salmon caught	11,566	9,163	11,051	26%	5%
Salmon released	10,812	8,171	9,347	32%	16%
(%) released	93%	89%	85%	5%	11%
Sea trout caught	19,277	21,330	21,728	-10%	-11%
Sea trout released	16,648	18,217	17,286	-9%	-4%
(% released)	86%	85%	80%	1%	9%

*Salmon and sea trout rod licences only.

Table 3: Summary of declared salmon and sea trout net catches in England and Wales for 2020 showing % change on 2019 and the 5-year mean (2015 to 2019)

Nets	2020	2019	5-year mean (2015 to 2019)	% change 2020 on 2019	% change 2020 on 5-year mean
Licences issued	154	154	239	0%	-36%
Salmon caught*	900	453	11,734	99%	-92%
Sea trout caught	12,703	14,599	35,555	-13%	-64%

*All salmon released in 2020.

Rods summary

These are the rod statistics for 2020:

The number of salmon and sea trout rod licences issued (28,758) decreased by 8% compared with 2019. This represents an 8% decrease when compared with the 5-year mean (31,319).

The total declared salmon caught by rod (11,566) increased by 26% compared with 2019 (9,163). This represents a 5% increase when compared with the 5-year mean (11,051).

The total declared sea trout caught by rod (19,277) decreased by 10% compared with 2019 (21,330). This represents an 11% decrease when compared with the 5-year mean (21,728).

Catch-and-release rates for rod caught salmon (93%) and sea trout (86%) showed an increase of 5% for salmon and 1% for sea trout on those recorded in 2019.

Anglers using a fly caught 6,466 salmon (56%) and 10,582 sea trout (55%). Spinning yielded 3,804 salmon (33%) and 6,745 sea trout (35%). Bait captured 1,207 salmon (10%) and 1,826 sea trout (9%). There was no method information for 124 catches.

The River Tyne had the highest declared rod catch of salmon (2,802). This accounted for 24% of the total for England and Wales. Next were the Eden (822), Wear (786) and Coquet (634).

The River Tyne had the highest declared rod catch of sea trout (1,615). This accounted for 8% of the total for England and Wales. Next were the Dyfi/Dovey (1,231), Teifi (1,197) and Tywi/Towy (1,060).

For salmon on the Wye, Test and Itchen we have used catch data from official catch returns. This is in preference to owner’s data which we have used in the past.

Nets summary

These are the nets statistics for 2020:

A total of 154 salmon and sea trout commercial net licences were issued. This compares with 154 in 2019 and a 5-year mean of 239. Since 1985 there has been an 85% reduction in the number of net licences issued annually in England and Wales (from 1,026 to 154).

The salmon net catch (900) increased by 50% compared with 2019 (453) and decreased by 99% when compared with the 5-year mean (11,734). The North East showed an increase in salmon caught (129 to 288). All net fisheries in England showed an increase in salmon caught, and Wales showed a slight decrease (189 to 184).

Of the 900 salmon caught by net fishers in 2020, 100% were released.

The average weight of net caught salmon was 4.74kg. This compares with an average weight of 4.23kg for rod caught salmon. In 2019 the average weight of net caught salmon was 3.76kg and that for rod caught salmon was 4.31kg.

A total of 12,703 sea trout were declared caught by the net fisheries, a decrease of 13% compared with the 2019 catch of 14,599 and a decrease of 64% compared with the 5-year mean of 35,555.

The average weight of net caught sea trout was 1.97kg. This compares with an average weight of 0.93kg for rod caught sea trout. In 2019, the average weight of net caught sea trout was 1.56kg and that for rod caught sea trout was 0.86kg.

Table 4: Number of net and fixed engine licences issued (1985 to 2020) and total number of days fished by salmon and sea trout rod licence holders (1994 to 2020), England and Wales

Year	Net licences	Rod days
1985	1,026	not applicable
1986	1,016	not applicable
1987	983	not applicable
1988	908	not applicable
1989	923	not applicable
1990	933	not applicable
1991	789	not applicable
1992	837	not applicable
1993	760	not applicable
1994	716	292,449
1995	677	243,288
1996	613	231,744
1997	593	269,705
1998	484	233,401
1999	498	187,998
2000	449	177,532
2001	444	134,853
2002	432	181,850
2003	417	172,729
2004	395	191,205
2005	385	186,877
2006	363	148,307
2007	357	164,679
2008	333	171,033
2009	317	183,287
2010	319	195,086
2011	308	196,902
2012	294	167,257
2013	304	164,449
2014	283	144,914
2015	272	141,811
2016	269	135,393
2017	269	141,943
2018	231	106,085
2019	154	125,297
2020	154	107,776

Note: the term fixed engine is an ancient one used in the UK as a general descriptor of stationary fishing gears.

Table 5: Total declared salmon rod catch for England and Wales, 1956 to 2020

Year	Total	Killed	Released
1956	19,955	19,955	not applicable
1957	21,090	21,090	not applicable
1958	26,209	26,209	not applicable
1959	17,440	17,440	not applicable
1960	20,873	20,873	not applicable
1961	16,138	16,138	not applicable
1962	24,743	24,743	not applicable
1963	30,145	30,145	not applicable
1964	25,034	25,034	not applicable
1965	28,594	28,594	not applicable
1966	35,353	35,353	not applicable
1967	29,735	29,735	not applicable
1968	16,860	16,860	not applicable
1969	16,306	16,306	not applicable
1970	19,180	19,180	not applicable
1971	19,869	19,869	not applicable
1972	24,889	24,889	not applicable
1973	21,020	21,020	not applicable
1974	24,197	24,197	not applicable
1975	24,300	24,300	not applicable
1976	10,779	10,779	not applicable
1977	19,219	19,219	not applicable
1978	17,605	17,605	not applicable
1979	14,108	14,108	not applicable
1980	21,145	21,145	not applicable
1981	22,190	22,190	not applicable
1982	13,524	13,524	not applicable
1983	14,815	14,815	not applicable
1984	11,022	11,022	not applicable
1985	19,601	19,601	not applicable
1986	20,347	20,347	not applicable
1987	19,702	19,702	not applicable
1988	32,876	32,876	not applicable
1989	14,721	14,721	not applicable
1990	14,849	14,849	not applicable
1991	13,974	13,974	not applicable
1992	14,319	14,319	not applicable
1993	18,742	17,294	1,448
1994	24,891	21,664	3,227
1995	16,006	12,819	3,187
1996	17,444	14,016	3,428
1997	13,047	9,915	3,132
1998	17,109	11,738	5,371
1999	12,505	7,058	5,447
2000	17,596	10,126	7,470
2001	14,383	8,240	6,143
2002	15,282	7,624	7,658
2003	11,519	5,094	6,425
2004	27,336	14,125	13,211
2005	21,418	9,435	11,983
2006	19,509	8,550	10,959
2007	19,984	9,071	10,913
2008	23,512	10,477	13,035
2009	15,563	6,467	9,096
2010	24,826	10,135	14,691
2011	23,008	8,812	14,196
2012	18,450	6,498	11,952
2013	14,920	4,462	10,458
2014	10,307	2,315	7,992
2015	10,261	2,150	8,111
2016	12,068	2,367	9,701
2017	13,571	2,315	11,256
2018	7,787	930	6,857
2019	9,163	992	8,171
2020	11,566	754	10,812

Table 6: Total declared sea trout rod catch for England and Wales, 1978 to 2020

Year	Total	Killed	Released
1978	30,966	30,966	not applicable
1979	47,462	47,462	not applicable
1980	40,668	40,668	not applicable
1981	45,152	45,152	not applicable
1982	38,730	38,730	not applicable
1983	39,157	39,157	not applicable
1984	30,560	30,560	not applicable
1985	32,379	32,379	not applicable
1986	36,882	36,882	not applicable
1987	55,863	55,863	not applicable
1988	49,618	49,618	not applicable
1989	22,910	22,910	not applicable
1990	17,031	17,031	not applicable
1991	21,951	21,951	not applicable
1992	14,742	14,742	not applicable
1993	26,685	18,931	7,754
1994	45,759	29,184	16,575
1995	27,335	16,091	11,244
1996	29,685	16,825	12,860
1997	30,142	17,302	12,840
1998	48,312	23,978	24,334
1999	46,797	24,035	22,762
2000	41,322	20,628	20,694
2001	40,392	18,061	22,331
2002	49,796	24,626	25,170
2003	45,101	20,698	24,403
2004	36,100	16,611	19,489
2005	40,319	16,590	23,729
2006	24,269	9,940	14,329
2007	29,398	12,622	16,776
2008	27,707	11,488	16,219
2009	30,354	11,616	18,738
2010	37,543	11,533	26,010
2011	35,564	9,884	25,680
2012	30,700	8,859	21,841
2013	29,427	6,820	22,607
2014	29,560	6,105	23,455
2015	27,851	6,348	21,503
2016	25,779	5,988	19,791
2017	22,135	5,251	16,884
2018	13,608	2,005	11,603
2019	21,330	3,113	18,217
2020	19,277	2,629	16,648

Table 7: Total declared salmon net and fixed engine catch for England and Wales, 1956 to 2020

Year	Total	Excluding NE coast	NE coast
1956	36,225	29,564	6,661
1957	36,591	29,921	6,670
1958	34,075	26,264	7,811
1959	40,302	29,861	10,441
1960	43,648	27,792	15,856
1961	34,334	22,699	11,635
1962	53,559	33,469	20,090
1963	45,290	32,858	12,432
1964	47,947	32,907	15,040
1965	45,161	28,980	16,181
1966	53,970	38,336	15,634
1967	64,953	38,594	26,359
1968	49,380	24,630	24,750
1969	79,624	29,800	49,824
1970	125,244	30,253	94,991
1971	89,992	29,639	60,353
1972	83,185	31,504	51,681
1973	93,766	30,924	62,842
1974	80,128	27,372	52,756
1975	88,762	35,311	53,451
1976	43,515	27,814	15,701
1977	75,063	22,175	52,888
1978	75,520	23,890	51,630
1979	61,278	17,814	43,464
1980	69,073	23,293	45,780
1981	98,849	29,736	69,113
1982	66,765	16,598	50,167
1983	102,180	24,903	77,277
1984	83,249	23,954	59,295
1985	75,932	18,576	57,356
1986	90,447	27,022	63,425
1987	63,728	27,585	36,143
1988	77,317	26,468	50,849
1989	68,940	27,487	41,453
1990	71,827	20,297	51,530
1991	37,675	12,246	25,429
1992	33,849	13,705	20,144
1993	57,081	15,281	41,800
1994	66,457	19,903	46,554
1995	67,659	14,449	53,210
1996	32,680	14,099	18,581
1997	31,459	9,537	21,922
1998	25,179	6,914	18,265
1999	34,146	7,313	26,833
2000	50,998	7,644	43,354
2001	43,243	7,128	36,115
2002	38,279	7,299	30,980
2003	17,219	6,784	10,435
2004	16,581	5,564	11,017
2005	16,811	6,914	9,897
2006	13,578	6,012	7,566
2007	10,922	3,831	7,091
2008	8,798	2,668	6,130
2009	7,505	2,110	5,395
2010	22,615	2,633	19,982
2011	25,896	1,682	24,214
2012	8,429	1,130	7,299
2013	18,143	1,500	16,643
2014	11,976	1,766	10,210
2015	17,132	1,269	15,863
2016	20,307	1,488	18,824
2017	10,133	712	9,157
2018	10,645	1,212	9,433
2019	453	324	129
2020	900	612	288

Table 8: Total declared sea trout net and fixed engine catch for England and Wales, 1978 to 2020

Year	Total	Excluding NE coast	NE coast
1978	55,300	17,709	37,591
1979	67,667	23,352	44,315
1980	97,206	31,351	65,855
1981	83,333	23,852	59,481
1982	79,353	23,374	55,979
1983	84,511	24,442	60,069
1984	95,699	31,623	64,076
1985	68,130	17,351	50,779
1986	62,452	14,735	47,717
1987	69,556	20,217	49,339
1988	73,184	18,899	54,285
1989	91,487	20,118	71,369
1990	56,194	11,777	44,417
1991	50,903	10,250	40,653
1992	41,903	9,834	32,069
1993	39,887	8,073	31,814
1994	60,895	9,759	51,136
1995	64,128	9,689	54,439
1996	35,259	7,861	27,398
1997	34,986	6,464	28,522
1998	27,159	4,899	22,260
1999	40,068	7,610	32,458
2000	46,022	6,635	39,387
2001	44,926	8,994	35,932
2002	37,018	6,478	30,540
2003	29,248	7,477	21,771
2004	26,055	6,313	19,742
2005	23,429	4,656	18,773
2006	25,311	2,819	22,492
2007	20,351	2,785	17,566
2008	27,974	3,109	24,865
2009	30,755	3,798	26,957
2010	60,229	4,683	55,546
2011	31,559	2,922	28,637
2012	24,418	2,465	21,953
2013	43,376	3,182	40,194
2014	49,250	4,606	44,644
2015	64,468	4,726	59,742
2016	41,803	2,940	38,863
2017	37,002	810	35,372
2018	24,082	1,574	22,508
2019	14,599	926	13,673
2020	12,703	1,801	10,902

4. Area catch summaries (2020, 2019 and 5-year mean)

Table 9: Summary of salmon rod catches by area

Environment Agency area	2020	2019	5-year mean (2015 to 2019)	% change (+/−) 2020 on 2019	% change (+/−) 2020 on 5-year mean
North East	4,480	4,468	3,999	0%	12%
Anglian	0	0	0	not applicable	not applicable
South East	418	217	316	93%	32%
South West	947	656	1,158	44%	-18%
Midlands	220	161	306	37%	-28%
North West	3,455	2,172	2,526	59%	37%
England	9,520	7,674	8,305	24%	15%
Wales	2,046	1,489	2,494	37%	-18%
England and Wales	11,566	9,163	10,799	26%	7%

Table 10: Summary of sea trout rod catches by area

Environment Agency area	2020	2019	5-year mean (2015 to 2019)	% change (+/−) 2020 on 2019	% change (+/−) 2020 on 5-year mean
North East	3,460	2,894	2,810	20%	23%
Anglian	0	1	5	-100%	-100%
South East	806	728	979	11%	-18%
South West	3,775	3,640	3,912	4%	-3%
Midlands	6	8	23	-25%	-74%
North West	3,834	4,260	5,466	-10%	-30%
England	11,881	11,531	13,194	3%	-10%
Wales	7,396	9,799	10,590	-25%	-30%
England and Wales	19,277	21,330	23,785	-10%	-19%

Table 11: Summary of salmon net and fixed engine catches by area

Environment Agency area	2020	2019	5-year mean (2015 to 2019)	% change (+/−) 2020 on 2019	% change (+/−) 2020 on 5-year mean
North East	288	129	10,681	123%	-97%
Anglian	0	0	0	not applicable	not applicable
South East	0	0	0	not applicable	not applicable
South West	12	5	245	140%	-95%
Midlands	45	4	89	1025%	-49%
North West	371	126	479	194%	-23%
England	716	264	11,494	171%	-94%
Wales	184	189	240	-3%	-23%
England and Wales	900	453	11,734	99%	-92%

Table 12: Summary of sea trout net and fixed engine catches by area

Environment Agency area	2020	2019	5-year mean (2015 to 2019)	% change (+/−) 2020 on 2019	% change (+/−) 2020 on 5-year mean
North East	10,902	13,673	34,178	-20%	-68%
Anglian	129	163	257	-21%	-50%
South East	0	0	1	not applicable	-100%
South West	136	85	216	60%	-37%
Midlands	4	0	0	not applicable	not applicable
North West	378	167	617	126%	-39%
England	11,549	14,088	35,269	-18%	-67%
Wales	1,154	511	1,077	126%	7%
England and Wales	12,703	14,599	36,346	-13%	-65%

Figure 5: Declared salmon and sea trout rod catches by area

Environment Agency area	Salmon	Sea trout
North East	4,480	3,460
Anglian	0	0
South East	418	806
South West	947	3,775
Midlands	220	6
North West	3,455	3,834
Wales	2,046	7,396
Total	11,566	19,277

Figure 6: Declared salmon and sea trout net and fixed engine catches by area

Environment Agency area	Salmon	Sea trout
North East	288	10,902
Anglian	0	129
South East	0	0
South West	12	136
Midlands	45	4
North West	371	378
Wales	184	1,154
Total	900	12,703

5. River catch summaries by area for rod and net fisheries, 2020

Table 13: North East salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Aln	6	6	100%
Coquet	634	571	90%
Tyne	2,802	2,479	88%
Wear	786	680	87%
Tees	21	21	100%
Esk (Yorks)	102	91	89%
Ouse (Yorks)	126	125	99%
Other	3	3	100%
Total	4,480	3,976	89%

Anglian salmon rod catches

There were no salmon rod catches in Anglian area in 2020.

Table 14: South East salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Itchen	204	204	100%
Test	213	213	100%
Other	1	1	100%
Total	418	418	100%

Table 15: South West salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Avon (Hants)	128	128	100%
Frome	45	45	100%
Axe	1	1	100%
Exe	139	135	97%
Teign	34	26	76%
Dart	9	8	89%
Avon (Devon)	11	11	100%
Erme	1	1	100%
Yealm	0	0	not applicable
Plym	12	11	92%
Tavy	39	32	82%
Lynher	56	54	96%
Tamar	91	79	87%
Fowey	94	89	95%
Camel	67	67	100%
Torridge	27	25	93%
Taw	147	132	90%
Lyn	45	45	100%
Other	1	1	100%
Total	947	890	94%

Table 16: Midlands salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Severn	220	219	100%
Other	0	0	not applicable
Total	220	219	100%

Table 17: North West salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Ribble	493	471	96%
Wyre	6	6	100%
Lune	436	415	95%
Kent	155	129	83%
Crake	7	7	100%
Leven	76	76	100%
Duddon	64	59	92%
Irt	106	92	87%
Esk (Cumbrian)	54	48	89%
Calder	12	12	100%
Ehen	245	196	80%
Derwent	342	305	89%
Ellen	6	6	100%
Eden	822	819	100%
Esk (Border)	613	608	99%
Other	18	18	100%
Total	3,455	3,267	95%

England salmon rod catches total

Total salmon rod catches for 2020:

• salmon caught – 9,520
• salmon released – 8,767
• percentage released – 92%

Table 18: Wales salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Wye	329	329	100%
Usk	263	261	99%
Taff	6	6	100%
Ogmore	29	29	100%
Afan	18	18	100%
Neath	16	16	100%
Tawe	22	22	100%
Loughor	4	4	100%
Gwendraeth Fach	1	1	100%
Tywi/Towy	490	490	100%
Taf	24	24	100%
Cleddau	22	22	100%
Nevern	26	26	100%
Teifi	171	171	100%
Ystwyth	4	4	100%
Rheidol	3	3	100%
Dyfi/Dovey	67	67	100%
Dysynni	5	5	100%
Mawddach	55	54	98%
Artro	3	2	67%
Dwyryd	7	7	100%
Glaslyn	4	4	100%
Dwyfawr	4	4	100%
Gwyrfai	0	0	not applicable
Seiont	12	12	100%
Ogwen	59	59	100%
Conwy	99	99	100%
Clwyd	14	14	100%
Dee	287	287	100%
Other	2	2	100%
Total	2,046	2,042	100%

Wales salmon rod catches total

Total salmon rod catches for 2020:

• salmon caught – 2,046
• salmon released – 2,042
• percentage released – 99.8%

England and Wales salmon rod catches total

Total salmon rod catches for 2020:

• salmon caught – 11,566
• salmon released – 10,809
• percentage released – 93%

Table 19: North East sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Aln	16	13	81%
Coquet	322	277	86%
Tyne	1,615	1,290	80%
Wear	721	609	84%
Tees	11	11	100%
Esk (Yorks)	724	574	79%
Ouse (Yorks)*	36	34	94%
Other	15	12	80%
Total	3,460	2,820	82%

Anglian sea trout rod catches

There were no sea trout rod catches in Anglian area in 2020.

Table 20: South East sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Thames	9	9	100%
Rother (Petworth)	16	16	100%
Ouse (Sussex)	34	33	97%
Itchen	352	333	95%
Test	256	227	89%
Beaulieu	24	18	75%
Lymington	47	45	96%
Other	68	61	90%
Total	806	742	92%

Table 21: South West sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Avon (Hants)	204	186	91%
Stour	8	7	88%
Piddle	3	3	100%
Frome	371	347	94%
Brit	10	10	100%
Axe	236	191	81%
Otter	92	89	97%
Exe	57	51	89%
Teign	446	340	76%
Dart	234	179	76%
Avon (Devon)	36	28	78%
Erme	31	28	90%
Yealm	1	1	100%
Plym	81	78	96%
Tavy	210	148	70%
Lynher	211	179	85%
Tamar	394	356	90%
Looe	0	0	not applicable
Fowey	512	441	86%
Camel	358	288	80%
Torridge	119	115	97%
Taw	152	125	82%
Lyn	6	6	100%
Other	3	3	100%
Total	3,775	3,199	85%

Table 22: Midlands sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Severn	6	6	100%
Other	0	0	not applicable
Total	6	6	100%

Table 23: North West sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Ribble	798	720	90%
Wyre	53	51	96%
Lune	748	650	87%
Kent	233	207	89%
Crake	53	52	98%
Leven	47	41	87%
Duddon	179	161	90%
Irt	233	216	93%
Esk (Cumbrian)	76	75	99%
Calder	1	1	100%
Ehen	368	350	95%
Derwent	151	151	100%
Ellen	43	37	86%
Eden	199	193	97%
Esk (Border)	596	546	92%
Other	56	56	100%
Total	3,834	3,507	91%

England sea trout rod catches total

Total sea trout rod catches for 2020:

• sea trout caught – 11,881
• sea trout released – 10,274
• percentage released – 86%

Table 24: Wales sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Wye	26	23	88%
Usk	49	37	76%
Rhymney	2	2	100%
Taff	2	2	100%
Ogmore	200	183	92%
Afan	42	32	76%
Neath	94	93	99%
Tawe	59	53	90%
Loughor	47	35	74%
Gwendraeth Fach	22	16	73%
Tywi/Towy	1,060	911	86%
Taf	20	19	95%
Cleddau	77	66	86%
Nevern	181	107	59%
Teifi	1,197	1,002	84%
Aeron	33	26	79%
Ystwyth	112	102	91%
Rheidol	53	50	94%
Dyfi/Dovey	1,231	1,101	89%
Dysynni	203	193	95%
Mawddach	474	452	95%
Artro	46	21	46%
Dwyryd	17	16	94%
Glaslyn	247	193	78%
Dwyfawr	181	125	69%
Dwyfach	3	2	67%
Llyfni	119	77	65%
Gwyrfai	6	5	83%
Seiont	86	81	94%
Cefni	0	0	not applicable
Ogwen	200	154	77%
Conwy	570	547	96%
Clwyd	482	425	88%
Dee	252	220	87%
Other	3	3	100%
Total	7,396	6,374	86%

Wales sea trout rod catches total

Total sea trout rod catches for 2020:

• sea trout caught – 7,396
• sea trout released – 6,374
• percentage released – 86%

England and Wales sea trout rod catches total

Total sea trout rod catches for 2020:

• sea trout caught – 19,277
• sea trout released – 16,648
• percentage released – 86%

Table 25: North East salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Northumbria and Yorkshire	Drift nets	not applicable	not applicable
Northumbria (D1)	T nets	19	45
Yorkshire (3-7)	T or J nets	269	758
Whole area	Total	288	804

Anglian salmon net catches

There were no salmon net catches in the Anglian coastal net fishery in 2020.

South East (Southern) salmon net catches

There were no salmon net catches in the South East (Southern) net fishery in 2020.

Table 26: South West salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Avon and Stour	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Poole Harbour	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Exe	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Teign	Seine nets	12	46
Dart	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Camel	Drift nets	not applicable	not applicable
Tavy	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Tamar	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Lynher	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Fowey	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Taw/Torridge	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Whole area	Total	12	46

Table 27: Midlands salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Severn	Seine/Draft nets	not applicable	not applicable
Severn	Lave nets	45	182
Severn	Putcher Rank	not applicable	not applicable
Whole area	Total	45	182

Table 28: North West salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Ribble	Drift nets	not applicable	not applicable
Lune	Haaf nets	40	186
Lune	Drift nets	not applicable	not applicable
Kent	Lave nets	not applicable	not applicable
Leven	Lave nets	2	6
Eden and Esk (Solway)	Haaf nets	329	1,484
Eden	Coop traps	not applicable	not applicable
Whole area	Total	371	1,676

England salmon net catches total

Total salmon net catches for 2020:

• salmon total number: 716
• salmon total weight: 2,708kg

Table 29: Wales salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Wye	Lave nets	not applicable	not applicable
Tywi/Towy	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Tywi/Towy	Coracle nets	64	553
Tywi/Towy	River total	64	553
Taf	Wade net	0	0
Taf	Coracle nets	2	14
Taf	River total	2	14
Cleddau	Compass nets	1	7
Nevern	Seine nets	0	0
Teifi	Seine nets	7	79
Teifi	Coracle nets	107	876.5
Teifi	River total	114	955.5
Dyfi/Dovey	Seine nets	0	0
Dysynni	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Mawddach	Seine nets	0	0
Glaslyn	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Conwy	Basket trap	not applicable	not applicable
Conwy	Seine nets	3	33
Conwy	River total	3	33
Dee	Trammel nets	not applicable	not applicable
Dee	Draft/seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Dee	River total	0	0

Wales salmon net catches total

Total salmon net catches for 2020:

• salmon caught: 184
• salmon total weight: 1,563kg

England and Wales salmon net catches total

Total salmon net catches for 2020:

• salmon caught: 900
• salmon total weight: 4,271kg

Table 30: North East sea trout net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Northumbria and Yorkshire	Drift nets	not applicable	not applicable
Northumbria (D1)	T nets	798	1,415
Yorkshire (3-7)	T or J nets	10,104	18,638
Whole area	Total	10,902	20,052

Table 31: Anglian sea trout net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Coastal	Drift nets	108	122
Coastal	Other nets (var.)	21	34
Whole area	Total	129	156

South East (Southern) sea trout net catches

There were no sea trout net catches in the South East (Southern) net fishery in 2020.

Table 32: South West sea trout net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Avon and Stour	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Poole Harbour	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Exe	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Teign	Seine nets	136	187
Dart	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Camel	Drift nets	not applicable	not applicable
Tavy	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Tamar	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Lynher	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Fowey	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Taw/Torridge	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Whole area	Total	136	187

Table 33: Midlands sea trout net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Severn	Draft/seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Severn	Lave nets	4	15
Severn	Fixed (Putcher Rank)	not applicable	not applicable
Whole area	Total	4	15

Table 34: North West sea trout net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Ribble	Drift nets	not applicable	not applicable
Lune	Haaf nets	69	94
Lune	Drift nets	not applicable	not applicable
Kent	Lave nets	not applicable	not applicable
Leven	Lave nets	0	0
Solway	Haaf nets	309	348
Eden	Coop traps	not applicable	not applicable
Whole area	Total	378	442

England sea trout net catches total

Total number of sea trout net catches for 2020:

• sea trout caught: 11,549
• sea trout total weight: 20,852kg

Table 35: Wales sea trout net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Tywi/Towy	Seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Tywi/Towy	Coracle nets	153	769
Tywi/Towy	River total	153	769
Taf	Wade net	0	0
Taf	Coracle nets	0	0
Taf	River total	0	0
Cleddau	Compass nets	2	6.6
Nevern	Seine nets	8	24
Teifi	Seine nets	89	264
Teifi	Coracle nets	864	3,015
Teifi	River total	953	3,278
Dyfi/Dovey	Seine nets	18	82
Dysynni	Seine nets	0	0
Mawddach	Seine nets	2	9.5
Conwy	Basket trap	not applicable	not applicable
Conwy	Seine nets	18	62
Conwy	River total	18	62
Clwyd	Sling nets	0	0
Dee	Trammel nets	not applicable	not applicable
Dee	Draft/seine nets	not applicable	not applicable
Dee	River total	0	0

Wales sea trout net catches total

Total number of sea trout nets catches for 2020:

• sea trout total number: 1,154
• sea trout total weight: 4,231kg

England and Wales sea trout net catches total

Total number of sea trout nets catches for 2020:

• sea trout total number: 12,703
• sea trout total weight: 25,083kg

6. Eel, smelt, and lamprey catches

The Environment Agency, together with Natural Resources Wales, issue commercial fishing authorisations for eel, elver, lamprey, and smelt fishing.

Eel and elver fishing

Authorisations for commercial yellow and silver eel fishing are restricted to those already licensed to fish. Elver fishing is restricted to certain locations with fishers only authorised to use handheld dip nets.

Adult eel fishing was authorised between 1 April and 30 November 2020. Elver fishers were authorised to fish between 15 February and 25 May 2020.

Smelt and lamprey fishing

Authorisations for smelt and lamprey fishing are restricted to those already authorised to fish.

Smelt fishing is generally authorised between February and April each year. Fishers must provide the Environment Agency with a completed catch return within 30 days of the expiry of their authorisation. The total weight of smelt taken is limited by fishing effort.

The fishing season for river lamprey is between November and December each year. The total weight of lamprey that can be taken is subject to a quota. Fishers must provide the Environment Agency with a completed catch return within 30 days of the expiry of their authorisation.

Table 36: Adult eel fishery – method, number of instruments, value and catch, 2020 season

Method	Number of instruments	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
Small wingless traps	194	430	732
Fyke nets	1,286	2,380	19,360
Fixed traps	117	345	165
Total	1,597	3,155	20,257

There were 41 authorised eel fishers in 2020

Table 37: Elver fishery – number of nets, value and catch, 2020 season

Number of dip nets	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
349	29,665	3,435
Total	29,665	3,435

There were 349 authorised elver fishers in 2020.

Table 38: Lamprey fishery – number of pots, value and catch, 2020 season

Method	Number of instruments	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
Pot traps	80	160	684.272
Total	80	160	684.272

Note: 683.5kg of lamprey were retained and 0.77kg were released.

There were 2 authorised lamprey fishers in 2020.

Table 39: Smelt fishery – number of instruments, value and catch, 2020 season

Method	Number of instruments	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
Pot traps/Fyke nets	446	320	1,210
Total	446	320	1,210

There were 2 authorised smelt fishers in 2020.