Research and analysis

Salmonid and fisheries statistics for England and Wales 2021

Updated 15 December 2023

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 2021. 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 2021. You should not accept it as a definitive record of the total numbers of fish landed.

1. Status of salmon stocks

The 2021 assessment of salmon stocks in England and Wales shows that the status of salmon populations continues to be of concern. The assessment places each river’s 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’

Note: the assessment is based on provisional data

State of 64 principal salmon rivers in England and Wales 2021

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 2021

Status	Percentage of stock
Not at risk	2%
Probably not at risk	10%
Probably at risk	14%
At risk	74%

Figure 2: Salmon stock status in Wales 2021

Status	Percentage of stock
Not at risk	0%
Probably not at risk	0%
Probably at risk	9%
At risk	91%

Figure 3: Percentage of principal salmon rivers in each risk category assessed against the management objective, for 2006 to 2021 and a projection to 2026 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%
2021	2%	10%	14%	74%
2026 Projection	2%	12%	26%	60%

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 2021 and a projection to 2026 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%
2021	0%	0%	9%	91%
2026 Projection	0%	0%	14%	86%

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 58,321 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, 96% of logbooks were accounted for in 2021.

The total returns received for the 2021 season was 16,463 (70% 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 2021

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%
2021	16,463	2,438	15%	14,025	85%

3. National overview and summary of main findings

Table 2: England and Wales summary of declared salmon and sea trout rod catches in 2021 showing % change on 2021 and the 5-year mean (2016 to 2020)

Rods	2021	2020	5-year mean (2016 to 2020)	% change 2021 on 2020	% change 2021 on 5-year mean
Licences issued*	23,388	28,758	30,901	-19%	-24%
Days declared* fished	91,930	107,776	127,807	-15%	-28%
Salmon caught	5,815	11,566	11,312	-50%	-49%
Salmon released	5,535	10,812	9,888	-49%	-44%
(%) released	95%	93%	87%	2%	9%
Sea trout caught	12,533	19,277	20,013	-35%	-37%
Sea trout released	11,069	16,648	16,315	-34%	-32%
(%) released	88%	86%	82%	2%	8%

*Salmon and sea trout rod licences only.

Table 3: Summary of declared salmon and sea trout net catches in England and Wales for 2021 showing % change on 2020 and the 5-year mean (2016 to 2020)

Nets	2021	2020	5-year mean (2016 to 2020)	% change 2021 on 2020	% change 2021 on 5-year mean
Licences issued	166	154	215	8%	-23%
Salmon caught	749	900	8,488	-17%	-91%
Sea trout caught	5,507	12,703	25,993	-57%	-79%

Rods summary

These are the rod statistics for 2021:

The number of salmon and sea trout rod licences issued (23,388) decreased by 19% compared with 2020. This represents a 24% decrease when compared with the 5-year mean (30,901).

The total declared salmon caught by rod (5,815) decreased by 50% compared with 2020 (11,566). This represents a 49% decrease when compared with the 5-year mean (11,312).

The total declared sea trout caught by rod (12,533) decreased by 35% compared with 2020 (19,277). This represents a 37% decrease when compared with the 5-year mean (20,013).

Catch-and-release rates for rod caught salmon (95%) and sea trout (88%) showed an increase of 2% for both salmon and sea trout.

Anglers using a fly caught 3,247 salmon (56%) and 7,748 sea trout (62%). Spinning yielded 1,751 salmon (30%) and 3,553 sea trout (28%). Bait captured 798 salmon (14%) and 1,192 sea trout (10%). There was no method information for 40 catches.

The River Tyne had the highest declared rod catch of salmon (1,499). This accounted for 26% of the total for England and Wales. Next were the Wear (431), Eden (411) and Coquet (289).

The River Tyne had the highest declared rod catch of sea trout (736). This accounted for 6% of the total for England and Wales. Next were the Itchen (714), Border Esk (593) and Tywi/Towy (556).

Nets summary

These are the nets statistics for 2021:

A total of 166 salmon and sea trout commercial net licences were issued. This compares with 154 in 2020 and a 5-year mean of 215. Since 1985 there has been an 84% reduction in the number of net licences issued annually in England and Wales (from 1,026 to 166).

The salmon net catch (749) decreased by 17% compared with 2020 (900) and decreased by 91% when compared with the 5-year mean (8,488). The Northeast showed a decrease in salmon caught (288 to 131), and the Northwest showed an increase (371 to 480). Wales showed a decrease in salmon caught (184 to 128).

Of the 749 salmon caught by net fishers in 2021, 100% were released.

The average weight of net caught salmon was 3.63kg. This compares with an average weight of 4.22kg for rod caught salmon. In 2020 the average weight of net caught salmon was 4.74kg and that for rod caught salmon was 4.23kg.

A total of 5,507 sea trout were declared caught by the net fisheries, a decrease of 57% compared with the 2020 catch of 12,703 and a decrease of 79% compared with the 5-year mean of 25,993.

The average weight of net caught sea trout was 1.72kg. This compares with an average weight of 0.87kg for rod caught sea trout. In 2020, the average weight of net caught sea trout was 1.97kg and that for rod caught sea trout was 0.93kg.

Table 4: Number of net and fixed engine licences issued (1985 to 2021) and total number of days fished by salmon and sea trout rod licence holders (1994 to 2021), England and Wales

Year	Net licences	Rod days
1985	1,026	No data
1986	1,016	No data
1987	983	No data
1988	908	No data
1989	923	No data
1990	933	No data
1991	789	No data
1992	837	No data
1993	760	No data
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
2021	166	91,930

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 2021

Year	Total	Killed	Released
1956	19,955	19,955	No data
1957	21,090	21,090	No data
1958	26,209	26,209	No data
1959	17,440	17,440	No data
1960	20,873	20,873	No data
1961	16,138	16,138	No data
1962	24,743	24,743	No data
1963	30,145	30,145	No data
1964	25,034	25,034	No data
1965	28,594	28,594	No data
1966	35,353	35,353	No data
1967	29,735	29,735	No data
1968	16,860	16,860	No data
1969	16,306	16,306	No data
1970	19,180	19,180	No data
1971	19,869	19,869	No data
1972	24,889	24,889	No data
1973	21,020	21,020	No data
1974	24,197	24,197	No data
1975	24,300	24,300	No data
1976	10,779	10,779	No data
1977	19,219	19,219	No data
1978	17,605	17,605	No data
1979	14,108	14,108	No data
1980	21,145	21,145	No data
1981	22,190	22,190	No data
1982	13,524	13,524	No data
1983	14,815	14,815	No data
1984	11,022	11,022	No data
1985	19,601	19,601	No data
1986	20,347	20,347	No data
1987	19,702	19,702	No data
1988	32,876	32,876	No data
1989	14,721	14,721	No data
1990	14,849	14,849	No data
1991	13,974	13,974	No data
1992	14,319	14,319	No data
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
2021	5,815	280	5,535

Table 6: Total declared sea trout rod catch for England and Wales, 1978 to 2021

Year	Total	Killed	Released
1978	30,966	30,966	No data
1979	47,462	47,462	No data
1980	40,668	40,668	No data
1981	45,152	45,152	No data
1982	38,730	38,730	No data
1983	39,157	39,157	No data
1984	30,560	30,560	No data
1985	32,379	32,379	No data
1986	36,882	36,882	No data
1987	55,863	55,863	No data
1988	49,618	49,618	No data
1989	22,910	22,910	No data
1990	17,031	17,031	No data
1991	21,951	21,951	No data
1992	14,742	14,742	No data
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
2021	12,533	1,464	11,069

Table 7: Total declared salmon net and fixed engine catch for England and Wales, 1956 to 2021

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
2021	749	618	131

Table 8: Total declared sea trout net and fixed engine catch for England and Wales, 1978 to 2021

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	36,778	1,630	35,148
2018	24,082	1,574	22,508
2019	14,599	926	13,673
2020	12,703	1,801	10,902
2021	5,507	776	4,731

4. Area catch summaries (2021, 2020 and 5-year mean)

Table 9: Summary of salmon rod catches by area

Environment Agency area	2021	2020	5-year mean (2016 to 2020)	% change (+/−) 2021 on 2020	% change (+/−) 2021 on 5-year mean
North East	2,351	4,480	3,999	-48%	-41%
Anglian	0	0	0	0%	0%
South East	208	418	316	-50%	-34%
South West	823	947	1,158	-13%	-29%
Midlands	93	220	306	-58%	-70%
North West	1,294	3,455	2,526	-63%	-49%
England	4,769	9,520	8,305	-50%	-43%
Wales	1,046	2,046	2,494	-49%	-58%
England and Wales	5,815	11,566	10,799	-50%	-46%

Table 10: Summary of sea trout rod catches by area

Environment Agency area	2021	2020	5-year mean (2016 to 2020)	% change (+/−) 2021 on 2020	% change (+/−) 2021 on 5-year mean
North East	1,661	3,460	2,736	-52%	-39%
Anglian	1	0	3	100%	-67%
South East	1,145	806	857	42%	34%
South West	3,185	3,775	3,462	-16%	-8%
Midlands	4	6	12	-33%	-67%
North West	2,586	3,834	4,387	-33%	-41%
England	8,582	11,881	11,456	-28%	-25%
Wales	3,944	7,396	9,254	-47%	-57%
England and Wales	12,533*	19,277	20,711	-35%	-39%

*7 fish from an unknown area

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

Environment Agency area	2021	2020	5-year mean (2016 to 2020	% change (+/−) 2021 on 2020	% change (+/−) 2021 on 5-year mean
North East	131	288	7,566	-55%	-98%
Anglian	2	0	0	-100%	-100%
South East	0	0	0	0%	0%
South West	2	12	167	-83%	-99%
Midlands	6	45	71	-87%	-92%
North West	480	371	445	29%	8%
England	621	716	8,249	-13%	-92%
Wales	128	184	239	-30%	-46%
England and Wales	749	900	8,488	-17%	-91%

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

Environment Agency area	2021	2020	5-year mean (2016 to 2020)	% change (+/−) 2021 on 2020	% change (+/−) 2021 on 5-year mean
North East	4,731	10,902	24,219	-57%	-80%
Anglian	69	129	209	-47%	-67%
South East	0	0	0	0%	0%
South West	53	136	148	-61%	-64%
Midlands	0	4	1	-100%	-100%
North West	344	378	487	-9%	-29%
England	5,197	11,549	25,064	-55%	-79%
Wales	310	1,154	929	-73%	-67%
England and Wales	5,507	12,703	25,993	-57%	-79%

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

Environment Agency area	Salmon	Sea trout
North East	2,351	1,661
Anglian	0	1
South East	208	1,145
South West	823	3,185
Midlands	93	4
North West	1,294	2,586
Wales	1,046	3,944
Total	5,815	12,533*

*7 fish from an unknown area

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

Environment Agency area	Salmon	Sea trout
North East	131	4,731
Anglian	2	69
South East	0	0
South West	2	53
Midlands	6	0
North West	480	344
Wales	128	310
Total	749	5,507

5. River catch summaries by area for rod and net fisheries, 2021

Table 13: North East salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Aln	5	5	100%
Coquet	289	278	90%
Esk Yorkshire	43	38	88%
Ouse Yorkshire	58	58	100%
Tees	26	26	100%
Tyne	1,499	1,387	89%
Wear	431	371	99%
Total	2,351	2,163	92%

Anglian salmon rod catches

There were no salmon rod catches in Anglian area in 2021.

Table 14: South East salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Itchen	109	109	100%
Test	98	98	100%
Other	1	1	100%
Total	208	208	100%

Table 15: South West salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Avon Devon	12	11	92%
Avon Hants	88	88	100%
Axe	0	0	No reported catch
Camel	42	42	100%
Dart	5	5	100%
Erme	4	4	100%
Exe	108	98	91%
Fowey	94	92	98%
Frome	42	42	100%
Lyn	44	43	98%
Lynher	63	61	97%
Plym	3	2	67%
Tamar	178	162	91%
Tavy	30	27	90%
Taw	59	57	97%
Teign	33	30	91%
Torridge	18	17	94%
Yealm	0	0	No reported catch
Total	823	781	95%

Table 16: Midlands salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Severn	91	90	99.55%
Other	2	2	100%
Total	93	92	99.55%

Table 17: North West salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Calder	6	6	100%
Crake	5	5	100%
Derwent	126	115	91%
Duddon	21	20	95%
Eden North West	411	411	100%
Ehen	82	62	76%
Ellen	5	5	100%
Esk Border	229	229	100%
Esk Cumbrian	44	42	95%
Irt	53	51	96%
Kent	36	33	92%
Leven	17	17	100%
Lune	85	85	100%
Ribble	170	160	94%
Wyre North West	1	1	100%
Other	3	3	100%
Total	1,294	1,245	96%

England salmon rod catches total

Total salmon rod catches for 2021:

• salmon caught – 4,769
• salmon released – 4,489
• percentage released – 94%

Table 18: Wales salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Afan	2	2	100%
Artro	0	0	No reported catch
Cleddau	21	21	100%
Clwyd	5	5	100%
Conwy	26	26	100%
Dee	170	170	100%
Dwyfawr	4	4	100%
Dwyryd	1	1	100%
Dyfi / Dovey	33	33	100%
Dysynni	4	4	100%
Glaslyn	4	4	100%
Gwendraeth Fach	2	2	100%
Gwyrfai	0	0	No reported catch
Loughor / Llwchwr	0	0	No reported catch
Mawddach	27	27	100%
Neath	14	14	100%
Nevern	5	5	100%
Ogmore	3	3	100%
Ogwen	30	30	100%
Rheidol	1	1	100%
Seiont	1	1	100%
Taf	12	12	100%
Taff	2	2	100%
Tawe	6	6	100%
Teifi	60	60	100%
Tywi / Towy	206	206	100%
Usk	140	140	100%
Wye	261	261	100%
Ystwyth	6	6	100%
Total	1,046	1,046	100%

Wales salmon rod catches total

Total salmon rod catches for 2021:

• salmon caught – 1,046
• salmon released – 1,046
• percentage released – 100%

England and Wales salmon rod catches total

Total salmon rod catches for 2021:

• salmon caught – 5,815
• salmon released – 5,535
• percentage released – 95%

Table 19: North East sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Aln	9	4	44%
Coquet	99	89	90%
Esk Yorkshire	375	311	83%
Ouse Yorkshire	23	19	83%
Tees	5	5	100%
Tyne	736	620	84%
Wear	406	333	82%
Other	8	6	75%
Total	1,661	1,387	84%

Anglian sea trout rod catches

There was a single sea trout caught and released in Anglian area in 2021.

Table 20: South East sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Beaulieu	9	6	67%
Itchen	714	699	98%
Lymington	47	46	98%
Ouse Sussex	17	17	100%
Rother Western	14	13	93%
Test	257	252	98%
Thames	13	13	100%
Other	74	57	77%
Total	1,145	1,103	96%

Table 21: South West sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Avon Devon	28	23	82%
Avon Hants	167	154	92%
Axe	273	238	87%
Brit	24	24	100%
Camel	304	245	81%
Dart	83	60	72%
Erme	10	7	70%
Exe	90	86	96%
Fowey	266	229	86%
Frome	310	291	94%
Looe	7	4	57%
Lyn	9	9	100%
Lynher	84	75	89%
Otter	50	46	92%
Piddle	0	0	No reported data
Plym	19	13	68%
Stour (South West)	9	9	100%
Tamar	337	301	89%
Tavy	331	262	79%
Taw	131	115	88%
Teign	545	472	87%
Torridge	97	91	94%
Yealm	0	0	No reported data
Other	11	8	73%
Total	3,185	2,762	87%

Table 22: Midlands sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Severn	3	3	100%
Other	1	1	100%
Total	4	4	100%

Table 23: North West sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Calder	1	1	100%
Crake	26	26	100%
Derwent	252	245	97%
Duddon	82	72	88%
Eden North West	170	166	98%
Ehen	201	195	97%
Ellen	3	3	100%
Esk Border	593	545	92%
Esk Cumbrian	134	132	99%
Irt	247	233	94%
Kent	97	84	87%
Leven	14	10	71%
Lune	417	374	90%
Ribble	332	316	95%
Wyre North West	14	14	100%
Other	3	3	100%
Total	2,586	2,419	94%

England sea trout rod catches total

Total sea trout rod catches for 2021:

• sea trout caught – 8,582
• sea trout released – 7,676
• percentage released – 89%

Table 24: Wales sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Aeron	320	270	84%
Afan	25	24	96%
Artro	14	11	79%
Cefni	0	0	No reported catch
Cleddau	66	60	91%
Clwyd	324	286	88%
Conwy	245	227	93%
Dee	223	213	96%
Dwyfach	3	3	100%
Dwyfawr	50	31	62%
Dwyryd	1	1	100%
Dyfi / Dovey	346	290	84%
Dysynni	184	181	98%
Glaslyn	201	170	85%
Gwendraeth Fach	10	5	50%
Gwyrfai	1	0	0%
Llyfni	71	27	38%
Loughor / Llwchwr	8	7	88%
Mawddach	163	150	92%
Neath	53	52	98%
Nevern	176	126	72%
Ogmore	57	56	98%
Ogwen	108	78	72%
Rheidol	51	47	92%
Rhymney	0	0	No reported catch
Seiont	48	42	88%
Taf	12	11	92%
Taff	18	17	94%
Tawe	18	13	72%
Teifi	524	429	82%
Tywi / Towy	556	494	89%
Usk	19	19	100%
Wye	9	8	89%
Ystwyth	35	33	94%
Other	5	5	100%
Total	3,944	3,386	86%

Wales sea trout rod catches total

Total sea trout rod catches for 2021:

• sea trout caught – 3,944
• sea trout released – 3,386
• percentage released – 86%

England and Wales sea trout rod catches total

Total sea trout rod catches for 2021:

• sea trout caught – 12,533
• sea trout released – 11,069
• percentage released – 88%

Note: the above total includes 7 sea trout caught with no area information.

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	2	4.54
Yorkshire (3-7)	T or J nets	129	397.35
Whole area	Total	131	401.89

Table 26: Anglian salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Coastal	Drift nets	2	5.00
Coastal	Other nets (var.)	0	0
Whole area	Total	2	5.00

South East (Southern) salmon net catches

There were no salmon net catches in the South East (Southern) net fishery in 2021.

Table 27: 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	2	8.18
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	2	8.18

Table 28: Midlands salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Severn	Seine/Draft nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Severn	Lave nets	6	27.73
Severn	Putcher Rank	Not applicable	Not applicable
Whole area	Total	6	27.73

Table 29: North West salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Ribble	Drift nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Lune	Haaf nets	13	64.41
Lune	Drift nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Kent	Lave nets	0	0
Leven	Lave nets	1	3.18
Eden and Esk (Solway)	Haaf nets	466	2,108.52
Eden	Coop traps	Not applicable	Not applicable
Whole area	Total	480	2,176.11

England salmon net catches total

Total salmon net catches for 2021:

• salmon total number: 621
• salmon total weight: 2217.02kg

Table 30: Wales salmon net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Wye	Lave nets	0	0
Tywi / Towy	Seine nets	15	64.10
Tywi / Towy	Coracle nets	37	114.10
Tywi / Towy	River total	52	178.20
Taf	Wade net	0	0.00
Taf	Coracle nets	0	0.00
Taf	River total	0	0.00
Cleddau (England and Wales)	Compass nets	1	3.64
Nevern	Seine nets	0	0.00
Teifi	Seine nets	19	89.09
Teifi	Coracle nets	55	226.59
Teifi	River total	74	315.68
Dyfi / Dovey	Seine nets	0	0.00
Dysynni	Seine nets	0	0.00
Mawddach	Seine nets	0	0.00
Glaslyn	Seine nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Conwy	Basket trap	0	0.00
Conwy	Seine nets	1	3.64
Conwy	River total	1	3.64
Dee	Trammel nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Dee	Draft/seine nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Dee	River total	Not applicable	Not applicable
Whole area	Total	128	501.14

Wales salmon net catches total

Total salmon net catches for 2021:

• salmon caught: 128
• salmon total weight: 501.14kg

England and Wales salmon net catches total

Total salmon net catches for 2021:

• salmon caught: 749
• salmon total weight: 2718.16kg

Table 31: 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	396	658.62
Yorkshire (3-7)	T or J nets	4,335	7,714.02
Whole area	Total	4,731	8,372.64

Table 32: Anglian sea trout net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Coastal	Drift nets	50	122.24
Coastal	Other nets (var.)	19	25.85
Whole area	Total	69	84.7

South East (Southern) sea trout net catches

There were no sea trout net catches in the South East (Southern) net fishery in 2021.

Table 33: 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	53	77.34
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	53	77.34

Midlands sea trout net catches

There were no sea trout net catches in Midlands area in 2021.

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	72	122.81
Lune	Drift nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Kent	Lave nets	0	0
Leven	Lave nets	3	4.55
Solway	Haaf nets	269	297.78
Eden	Coop traps	Not applicable	Not applicable
Whole area	Total	344	425.13

England sea trout net catches total

Total number of sea trout net catches for 2021:

• sea trout caught: 5,197
• sea trout total weight: 8,958.46kg

Table 35: Wales sea trout net catches

River/fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Tywi/Towy	Seine nets (b)	42	64.09
Tywi/Towy	Coracle nets (b)	55	102.73
Tywi/Towy	River total	97	166.82
Taf	Wade net	0	0.00
Taf	Coracle nets (b)	0	0.00
Taf	River total	0	0.00
Cleddau (E&W)	Compass nets	0	0.00
Nevern	Seine nets	0	0.00
Teifi	Seine nets (b)	7	14.55
Teifi	Coracle nets (b)	187	295.41
Teifi	River total	194	309.96
Dyfi / Dovey	Seine nets (b)	8	20.00
Dysynni	Seine nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Mawddach	Seine nets	1	3.86
Conwy	Basket trap	Not applicable	Not applicable
Conwy	Seine nets	10	16.82
Conwy	River total	10	16.82
Clwyd	Sling nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Dee	Trammel nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Dee	Draft/seine nets	Not applicable	Not applicable
Dee	River total	Not applicable	Not applicable
Whole area	Total	310	517.46

Wales sea trout net catches total

Total number of sea trout nets catches for 2021:

• sea trout total number: 310
• sea trout total weight: 517.46kg

England and Wales sea trout net catches total

Total number of sea trout nets catches for 2021:

• sea trout total number: 5,507
• sea trout total weight: 9,475.92kg

6. Eel, smelt, and lamprey catches

The Environment Agency 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 10 December 2021. Elver fishers were authorised to fish between 01 March and 25 May 2021.

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, 2021 season

Method	Number of instruments	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
Small wingless traps	190	600	839
Fyke nets	1,434	2,280	24,960
Fixed traps	4	460	136
Total	1,628	3,340	25,935

There were 41 authorised eel fishers in 2021.

Table 37: Elver fishery – number of nets, value and catch, 2021 season

Number of dip nets	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
149	12,665	609
Total	12,665	609

There were 149 authorised elver fishers in 2021.

Table 38: Lamprey fishery – number of pots, value and catch, 2021 season

Method	Number of instruments	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
Pot traps	60	160	1,774
Total	60	160	1,774

There were 2 authorised lamprey fishers in 2021.

Table 39: Smelt fishery – number of instruments, value and catch, 2021 season

Method	Number of instruments	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
Pot traps/Fyke nets	472	320	740
Total	472	320	740

There were 2 authorised smelt fishers in 2021.