Research and analysis

Salmonid and freshwater fisheries statistics for 2024

Published 23 September 2025

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 2024. It covers England, Wales and the Border Esk in Scotland.

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 2024. You should not accept it as a definitive record of the total numbers of fish landed.

See data.gov.uk for the salmonid and freshwater fisheries statistics data tables.

1. Rod and net licence catch returns

For net catch returns, 98.37% of logbooks were accounted for in 2024.

The Environment Agency sent a total of 55,621 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.

The total number of rod catch returns received for the 2024 season was 13,845 (63.1% 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 the following table.

Number and percentage of paper and online catch returns 2018 to 2024

Year	Total returns	Licences issued	% of catch returns	Paper returns	Paper (%)	Online returns	Online (%)
2018	20,736	31,655	65.5%	5,239	25.3%	15,497	74.7%
2019	23,539	31,099	75.7%	4,974	21.1%	18,565	78.9%
2020	19,794	28,758	68.8%	3,531	17.8%	16,263	82.2%
2021	16,463	23,388	70.4%	2,438	14.8%	14,025	85.2%
2022	12,469	21,874	57.0%	1,527	12.2%	10,942	87.8%
2023	12,965	22,077	58.7%	2,169	16.7%	10,796	83.3%
2024	13,845	21,927	63.1%	1,743	12.6%	12,102	87.4%

2. National overview and summary of main findings

England and Wales summary of declared salmon and sea trout rod catches in 2024 showing percentage change on 2023 and the 5-year mean (2019 to 2023)

The following table includes salmon and sea trout rod licences only.

Rods	2024	2023	5-year mean (2019 to 2023)	% change 2024 on 2023	% change 2024 on 5-year mean
Licences issued	21,927	22,077	25,439	-0.7%	-13.8%
Days declared fished	84,046	86,773	97,596	-3.1%	-13.9%
Salmon caught	6,011	5,188	7,624	15.9%	-21.2%
Salmon released	5,767	4,929	7,111	17.0%	-18.9%
(%) released	95.9%	95.0%	93.3%	1.0%	2.9%
Sea trout caught	10,960	11,125	14,875	-1.5%	-26.3%
Sea trout released	9,940	9,866	12,968	0.8%	-23.3%
(%) released	90.7%	88.7%	87.2%	2.3%	4.0%

Summary of declared salmon and sea trout net catches in England and Wales for 2024 showing percentage change on 2023 and the 5-year mean (2019 to 2023)

Nets	2024	2023	5-year mean (2019 to 2023)	% change 2024 on 2023	% change 2024 on 5-year mean
Licences issued	121	140	152	-13.6%	-20.2%
Salmon caught	404	486	629	-16.9%	-35.8%
Sea trout caught	2,262	6,769	9,518	-66.6%	-76.2%

Rods summary

The number of salmon and sea trout rod licences issued in England and Wales (21,927) decreased by 0.7% compared with 2023 (22,077). This represents a 13.8% decrease when compared with the 5-year mean (25,439).

The total declared salmon caught by rod in England and Wales (6,011) increased by 15.9% compared with 2023 (5,188). This represents a 21.2% decrease when compared with the 5-year mean (7,624).

The total declared sea trout caught by rod in England and Wales (10,960) decreased by 1.5% compared with 2023 (11,125). This represents a 26.3% decrease when compared with the 5-year mean (14,875).

Catch-and-release rates for rod caught salmon (95.9%) and sea trout (90.7%) in England and Wales showed an increase of 1.0% for salmon and 2.3% for sea trout when compared with 2023.

Anglers using a fly caught 3,553 salmon (59.11%) and 6,585 sea trout (60.08%). Spinning yielded 1,750 salmon (29.11%) and 3,317 sea trout (30.26%). Bait captured 610 salmon (10.15%) and 978 sea trout (8.92%). There was no method information for 98 salmon captures (1.63%) and 80 sea trout captures (0.73%).

The River Tyne had the highest declared rod catch of salmon (1,780). This accounted for 29.61% of the total for England and Wales. Next were the Wear (654), Coquet (578) and Eden North West (463)

The River Tyne had the highest declared rod catch of sea trout (825). This accounted for 7.53% of the total for England and Wales. Next were the Teifi (626), Lune (522), Border Esk and Teign (494).

Nets summary

A total of 121 salmon and migratory trout commercial net licences were issued. This compares with 140 in 2023 and a 5-year mean of 152. Since 1985 there has been an 88.21% reduction in the number of net licences issued annually in England and Wales (from 1,026 to 121).

The England and Wales salmon net catch (404) decreased by 16.87% compared with 2023 (486) and decreased by 35.75% when compared with the 5-year mean (629). The North East showed a decrease in salmon caught (34 to 24), and the North West showed an increase (193 to 243). Wales showed a decrease in salmon caught (252 to 122).

Of the 404 salmon caught by net fishers in in England and Wales in 2024, 100% were released.

The average weight of net caught salmon was 4.12kg. This compares with an average weight of 4.22kg for rod caught salmon. In 2023, the average weight of net caught salmon was 4.49kg and that for rod caught salmon was 4.50kg.

A total of 2,262 sea trout were declared caught by the net fisheries in England and Wales in 2024, a decrease of 66.58% compared with the 2023 catch of 6,769 and a decrease of 76.24% compared with the 5-year mean of 9,518.

The average weight of net caught sea trout was 1.64kg. This compares with an average weight of 0.87kg for rod caught sea trout. In 2023, the average weight of net caught sea trout was 1.79kg and that for rod caught sea trout was 1.03kg.

Number of net and fixed engine licences issued (1985 to 2024) and total number of days fished by salmon and sea trout rod licence holders (1994 to 2024), England and Wales

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

Number of net and fixed engine licences issued between 1985 and 2024

Year	Net licences
1985	1,026
1986	1,016
1987	983
1988	908
1989	923
1990	933
1991	789
1992	837
1993	760
1994	716
1995	677
1996	613
1997	593
1998	484
1999	498
2000	449
2001	444
2002	432
2003	417
2004	395
2005	385
2006	363
2007	357
2008	333
2009	317
2010	319
2011	308
2012	294
2013	304
2014	283
2015	272
2016	269
2017	269
2018	231
2019	154
2020	154
2021	166
2022	144
2023	140
2024	121

Total number of days fished by salmon and sea trout rod licence holders between 1994 and 2024

Year	Rod days
1994	292,449
1995	243,288
1996	231,744
1997	269,705
1998	233,401
1999	187,998
2000	177,532
2001	134,853
2002	181,850
2003	172,729
2004	191,205
2005	186,877
2006	148,307
2007	164,679
2008	171,033
2009	183,287
2010	195,086
2011	196,902
2012	167,257
2013	164,449
2014	144,914
2015	141,811
2016	135,393
2017	141,943
2018	106,056
2019	125,297
2020	107,776
2021	91,930
2022	76,206
2023	86,773
2024	84,046

Total declared salmon rod catch for England and Wales, 1956 to 2024

The long term mean is 17,999.

There is no data for released salmon rod catch from 1956 to 1992.

Year	Killed	Released	Total
1956	19,955		19,955
1957	21,090		21,090
1958	26,209		26,209
1959	17,440		17,440
1960	20,873		20,873
1961	16,138		16,138
1962	24,743		24,743
1963	30,145		30,145
1964	25,034		25,034
1965	28,594		28,594
1966	35,353		35,353
1967	29,735		29,735
1968	16,860		16,860
1969	16,306		16,306
1970	19,180		19,180
1971	19,869		19,869
1972	24,889		24,889
1973	21,020		21,020
1974	24,197		24,197
1975	24,300		24,300
1976	10,779		10,779
1977	19,219		19,219
1978	17,605		17,605
1979	14,108		14,108
1980	21,145		21,145
1981	22,190		22,190
1982	13,524		13,524
1983	14,815		14,815
1984	11,022		11,022
1985	19,601		19,601
1986	20,347		20,347
1987	19,702		19,702
1988	32,876		32,876
1989	14,721		14,721
1990	14,849		14,849
1991	13,974		13,974
1992	14,319		14,319
1993	17,294	1,448	18,742
1994	21,664	3,227	24,891
1995	12,819	3,187	16,006
1996	14,016	3,428	17,444
1997	9,915	3,132	13,047
1998	11,738	5,371	17,109
1999	7,058	5,447	12,505
2000	10,126	7,470	17,596
2001	8,240	6,143	14,383
2002	7,624	7,658	15,282
2003	5,094	6,425	11,519
2004	14,125	13,211	27,336
2005	9,435	11,983	21,418
2006	8,550	10,959	19,509
2007	9,071	10,913	19,984
2008	10,477	13,035	23,512
2009	6,465	9,096	15,561
2010	10,134	14,691	24,825
2011	8,812	14,196	23,008
2012	6,498	11,957	18,455
2013	4,462	10,458	14,920
2014	2,315	7,992	10,307
2015	2,150	8,111	10,261
2016	2,367	9,701	12,068
2017	2,315	11,256	13,571
2018	930	6,858	7,788
2019	992	8,171	9,163
2020	754	10,812	11,566
2021	280	5,534	5,814
2022	277	6,110	6,387
2023	259	4,929	5,188
2024	244	5,767	6,011

Total declared sea trout rod catch for England and Wales, 1978 to 2024

The long term mean is 31,512.

There is no data for released sea trout rod catch from 1978 to 1992.

Year	Killed	Released	Total
1978	30,966		30,966
1979	47,462		47,462
1980	40,668		40,668
1981	45,152		45,152
1982	38,730		38,730
1983	39,157		39,157
1984	30,560		30,560
1985	32,379		32,379
1986	36,882		36,882
1987	55,863		55,863
1988	49,618		49,618
1989	22,910		22,910
1990	17,031		17,031
1991	21,951		21,951
1992	14,742		14,742
1993	18,931	7,754	26,685
1994	29,184	16,575	45,759
1995	16,091	11,244	27,335
1996	16,825	12,860	29,685
1997	17,302	12,840	30,142
1998	23,978	24,334	48,312
1999	24,035	22,762	46,797
2000	20,628	20,694	41,322
2001	18,061	22,331	40,392
2002	24,626	25,170	49,796
2003	20,698	24,403	45,101
2004	16,611	19,489	36,100
2005	16,590	23,729	40,319
2006	9,940	14,329	24,269
2007	12,622	16,776	29,398
2008	11,488	16,219	27,707
2009	11,620	18,739	30,359
2010	11,533	26,010	37,543
2011	9,884	25,680	35,564
2012	8,859	21,841	30,700
2013	6,820	22,607	29,427
2014	6,105	23,455	29,560
2015	6,348	21,503	27,851
2016	5,988	19,791	25,779
2017	5,251	16,884	22,135
2018	1,994	11,614	13,608
2019	3,113	18,217	21,330
2020	2,629	16,648	19,277
2021	1,462	11,067	12,529
2022	1,071	9,041	10,112
2023	1,259	9,866	11,125
2024	1,020	9,940	10,960

Total declared salmon net and fixed engine catch for England and Wales, 1956 to 2024

The long term mean is 45,055.

Year	Excluding North East coast	North East coast	Total
1956	29,564	6,661	36,225
1957	29,921	6,670	36,591
1958	26,264	7,811	34,075
1959	29,861	10,441	40,302
1960	27,792	15,856	43,648
1961	22,699	11,635	34,334
1962	33,469	20,090	53,559
1963	32,858	12,432	45,290
1964	32,907	15,040	47,947
1965	28,980	16,181	45,161
1966	38,336	15,634	53,970
1967	38,594	26,359	64,953
1968	24,630	24,750	49,380
1969	29,800	49,824	79,624
1970	30,253	94,991	125,244
1971	29,639	60,353	89,992
1972	31,504	51,681	83,185
1973	30,924	62,842	93,766
1974	27,372	52,756	80,128
1975	35,311	53,451	88,762
1976	27,814	15,701	43,515
1977	22,175	52,888	75,063
1978	23,890	51,630	75,520
1979	17,814	43,464	61,278
1980	23,293	45,780	69,073
1981	29,736	69,113	98,849
1982	16,598	50,167	66,765
1983	24,903	77,277	102,180
1984	23,954	59,295	83,249
1985	18,576	57,356	75,932
1986	27,022	63,425	90,447
1987	27,585	36,143	63,728
1988	26,468	50,849	77,317
1989	27,487	41,453	68,940
1990	20,297	51,530	71,827
1991	12,246	25,429	37,675
1992	13,705	20,144	33,849
1993	15,281	41,800	57,081
1994	19,903	46,554	66,457
1995	14,449	53,210	67,659
1996	14,099	18,581	32,680
1997	9,537	21,922	31,459
1998	6,914	18,265	25,179
1999	7,313	26,833	34,146
2000	7,644	43,354	50,998
2001	7,128	36,115	43,243
2002	7,299	30,980	38,279
2003	6,784	10,435	17,219
2004	5,564	11,017	16,581
2005	6,914	9,897	16,811
2006	6,012	7,566	13,578
2007	3,831	7,091	10,922
2008	2,668	6,130	8,798
2009	2,110	5,395	7,505
2010	2,633	19,982	22,615
2011	1,682	24,214	25,896
2012	1,130	7,299	8,429
2013	1,500	16,643	18,143
2014	1,766	10,210	11,976
2015	1,269	15,863	17,132
2016	1,488	18,824	20,307
2017	712	9,157	10,133
2018	1,212	9,433	10,645
2019	324	129	453
2020	612	288	900
2021	618	131	749
2022	483	73	556
2023	452	34	486
2024	380	24	404

Total declared sea trout net and fixed engine catch for England and Wales, 1978 to 2024

The long term mean is 45,025.

Year	Excluding North East coast	North East coast	Total
1978	17,709	37,591	55,300
1979	23,352	44,315	67,667
1980	31,351	65,855	97,206
1981	23,852	59,481	83,333
1982	23,374	55,979	79,353
1983	24,442	60,069	84,511
1984	31,623	64,076	95,699
1985	17,351	50,779	68,130
1986	14,735	47,717	62,452
1987	20,217	49,339	69,556
1988	18,899	54,285	73,184
1989	20,118	71,369	91,487
1990	11,777	44,417	56,194
1991	10,250	40,653	50,903
1992	9,834	32,069	41,903
1993	8,073	31,814	39,887
1994	9,759	51,136	60,895
1995	9,689	54,439	64,128
1996	7,861	27,398	35,259
1997	6,464	28,522	34,986
1998	4,899	22,260	27,159
1999	7,610	32,458	40,068
2000	6,635	39,387	46,022
2001	8,994	35,932	44,926
2002	6,478	30,540	37,018
2003	7,477	21,771	29,248
2004	6,313	19,742	26,055
2005	4,656	18,773	23,429
2006	2,819	22,492	25,311
2007	2,785	17,566	20,351
2008	3,109	24,865	27,974
2009	3,798	26,957	30,755
2010	4,683	55,546	60,229
2011	2,922	28,637	31,559
2012	2,465	21,953	24,418
2013	3,182	40,194	43,376
2014	4,606	44,644	49,250
2015	4,726	59,742	64,468
2016	2,940	38,863	41,803
2017	1,630	35,148	36,778
2018	1,574	22,508	24,082
2019	926	13,673	14,599
2020	1,801	10,902	12,703
2021	776	4,731	5,507
2022	1,052	6,961	8,013
2023	958	5,811	6,769
2024	564	1,698	2,262

3. Area catch summaries (2024, 2023 and 5-year mean)

Salmon rod catches by area

Country or Environment Agency area	2024	2023	5-year mean (2019 to 2023)	% change (+/-) 2024 on 2023	% change (+/-) 2024 on 5-year mean
North East	3,161	2,495	3400	26.7%	-7.0%
Anglian	0	0	0	0%	0%
South East	109	144	229	-24.3%	-52.4%
South West	301	495	676	-39.2%	-55.4%
Midlands	22	52	118	-57.7%	-81.3%
North West	1,606	1,154	1938	39.2%	-17.1%
England	5,199	4,340	6360	19.8%	-18.3%
Wales	812	848	1262	-4.2%	-35.7%
England and Wales	6,011	5,188	7624	15.9%	-21.2%

Sea trout rod catches by area

Country or Environment Agency area	2024	2023	5-year mean (2019 to 2023)	% change (+/-) 2024 on 2023	% change (+/-) 2024 on 5-year mean
North East	1,767	2,911	2,582	-39.3%	-31.6%
Anglian	1	0	0	-	150.0%
South East	565	681	779	-17.0%	-27.5%
South West	2,649	1,936	2,812	36.8%	-5.8%
Midlands	0	0	5	-	-100%
North West	2,468	2,140	3,061	15.3%	-19.4%
England	7,450	7,668	9,239	-2.8%	-19.4%
Wales	3,510	3,457	5,634	1.5%	-37.7%
England and Wales	10,960	11,125	14,875	-1.5%	-26.3%

Salmon net and fixed engine catches by area

Country or Environment Agency area	2024	2023	5-year mean (2019 to 2023)	% change (+/-) 2024 on 2023	% change (+/-) 2024 on 5-year mean
North East	1,767	2,911	2,582	-39.3%	-31.6%
Anglian	1	0	0	-	150.0%
South East	565	681	779	-17.0%	-27.5%
South West	2,649	1,936	2,812	36.8%	-5.8%
Midlands	0	0	5	-	-100%
North West	2,468	2,140	3,061	15.3%	-19.4%
England	7,450	7,668	9,239	-2.8%	-19.4%
Wales	3,510	3,457	5,634	1.5%	-37.7%
England and Wales	10,960	11,125	14,875	-1.5%	-26.3%

Sea trout net and fixed engine catches by area

Country or Environment Agency area	2024	2023	5-year mean (2019 to 2023)	% change (+/-) 2024 on 2023	% change (+/-) 2024 on 5-year mean
North East	1,698	5,811	8,416	-70.8%	-79.8%
Anglian	60	98	103	-38.8%	-42.0%
South East	0	0	0	0%	0%
South West	90	43	81	109.3%	11.1%
Midlands	0	0	1	-	-100%
North West	154	207	263	-25.6%	-41.4%
England	2,002	6,159	8,864	-67.5%	-77.4%
Wales	260	610	655	-57.4%	-60.3%
England and Wales	2,262	6,769	9,518	-66.6%	-76.2%

4. River catch summaries by area for rod and net fisheries, 2024

Salmon rod catches

North East Salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Aln	2	2	100%
Coquet	578	551	95.3%
Esk Yorkshire	70	67	95.7%
Ouse Yorkshire	54	54	100%
Tees	23	23	100%
Tyne	1,780	1,641	92.2%
Wear	654	613	93.7%
Other	0	0	no reported catch
Total	3,161	2,951	93.4%

South East salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Itchen	72	72	100%
Test	37	37	100%
Other	0	0	no reported catch
Total	109	109	100%

South West salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Avon Devon	4	4	100%
Avon Hants	31	31	100%
Axe	2	2	100%
Camel	54	54	100%
Dart	0	0	no reported catch
Erme	0	0	no reported catch
Exe	31	31	100%
Fowey	42	40	95.2%
Frome	7	7	100%
Lyn	27	27	100%
Lynher	32	32	100%
Plym	0	0	no reported catch
Tamar	17	15	88.2%
Tavy	4	4	100%
Taw	25	25	100%
Teign	10	8	80%
Torridge	13	12	92.3%
Yealm	0	0	no reported catch
Other	2	1	50%
Total	301	293	97.3%

Midlands salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Severn	22	22	100%
Other	0	0	no reported catch
Total	22	22	100%

North West salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Calder	5	5	100%
Crake	11	11	100%
Derwent	87	87	100%
Duddon	26	25	96.2%
Eden North West	463	463	100%
Ehen	89	80	89.9%
Ellen	5	5	100%
Esk Border	250	250	100%
Esk Cumbrian	34	32	94.1%
Irt	55	55	100%
Kent	79	69	87.3%
Leven	30	30	100%
Lune	243	243	100%
Ribble	222	218	98.2%
Wyre North West	2	2	100%
Other	5	5	100%
Total	1,606	1,580	98.4%

England salmon rod catch total

Total salmon rod catches for 2024:

• salmon caught: 5,199
• salmon released: 4,955
• percentage released: 95.3%

Wales salmon rod catches

River	Salmon caught	Salmon released	Percentage released
Afan	2	2	100%
Artro	0	0	no reported catch
Cleddau	30	30	100%
Clwyd	3	3	100%
Conwy	35	35	100%
Dee	130	130	100%
Dwyfawr	0	0	no reported catch
Dwyryd	1	1	100%
Dyfi/Dovey	36	36	100%
Dysynni	1	1	100%
Glaslyn	1	1	100%
Gwendraeth Fach	1	1	100%
Gwyrfai	0	0	no reported catch
Loughor/Llwchwr	0	0	no reported catch
Mawddach	19	19	100%
Neath	2	2	100%
Nevern	8	8	100%
Ogmore	5	5	100%
Ogwen	32	32	100%
Rheidol	0	0	no reported catch
Seiont	1	1	100%
Taf	2	2	100%
Taff	5	5	100%
Tawe	5	5	100%
Teifi	126	126	100%
Tywi/Towy	147	147	100%
Usk	66	66	100%
Wye	153	153	100%
Ystwyth	0	0	no reported catch
Other	1	1	100%
Total	812	812	100%

England and Wales salmon rod catch total

Total salmon rod catches for 2024:

• salmon caught: 6,011
• salmon released: 5,767
• percentage released: 95.9%

Sea trout rod catches

North East sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Aln	5	5	100%
Coquet	226	196	86.7%
Esk Yorkshire	330	285	86.4%
Ouse Yorkshire	9	8	88.9%
Tees	3	3	100%
Tyne	825	735	89.1%
Wear	361	324	89.8%
Other	8	6	75%
Total	1,767	1,562	88.4%

Anglian sea trout rod catches

There was one sea trout caught and released in the Anglian area in 2024.

South East sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Beaulieu	21	19	90.5%
Itchen	187	177	94.7%
Lymington	20	20	100%
Ouse Sussex	32	32	100%
Rother Western	17	17	100%
Test	188	184	97.9%
Thames	0	0	no reported catch
Other	100	90	90%
Total	565	539	95.4%

South West sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Avon Devon	63	60	95.2%
Avon Hants	278	265	95.3%
Axe	306	254	83.0%
Brit	1	1	100%
Camel	306	266	86.9%
Dart	208	181	87.0%
Erme	14	14	100%
Exe	6	3	50%
Fowey	154	133	86.4%
Frome	248	207	83.5%
Looe	2	1	50%
Lyn	0	0	no reported catch
Lynher	53	48	90.6%
Otter	44	39	88.6%
Piddle	0	0	no reported catch
Plym	35	27	77.1%
Stour (South West)	8	8	100%
Tamar	163	152	93.3%
Tavy	94	83	88.3%
Taw	67	56	83.6%
Teign	494	449	90.9%
Torridge	101	87	86.1%
Yealm	1	1	100%
Other	3	3	100%
Total	2,649	2,338	88.3%

Midlands sea trout rod catches

There were no sea trout caught in the Midlands area in 2024.

North West sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Calder	2	2	100%
Crake	9	9	100%
Derwent	101	95	94.1%
Duddon	75	69	92.0%
Eden North West	119	116	97.5%
Ehen	163	158	96.9%
Ellen	22	19	86.4%
Esk Border	494	461	93.3%
Esk Cumbrian	56	47	83.9%
Irt	83	82	98.8%
Kent	364	346	95.1%
Leven	22	22	100%
Lune	522	481	92.1%
Ribble	404	368	91.1%
Wyre North West	16	16	100%
Other	16	12	75%
Total	2,468	2,303	93.3%

England sea trout rod catch total

Total sea trout rod catches for 2024:

• sea trout caught: 7,450
• sea trout released: 6,743
• percentage released: 90.5%

Wales sea trout rod catches

River	Sea trout caught	Sea trout released	Percentage released
Aeron	92	61	66.3%
Afan	27	25	92.6%
Artro	10	3	30%
Cefni	0	0	no reported catch
Cleddau	38	34	89.5%
Clwyd	436	408	93.6%
Conwy	188	183	97.3%
Dee	143	136	95.1%
Dwyfach	0	0	no reported catch
Dwyfawr	93	80	86.0%
Dwyryd	23	20	87.0%
Dyfi/Dovey	482	459	95.2%
Dysynni	157	147	93.6%
Glaslyn	244	227	93.0%
Gwendraeth Fach	53	50	94.3%
Gwyrfai	0	0	no reported catch
Llyfni	4	3	75%
Loughor/Llwchwr	2	1	50%
Mawddach	121	115	95.0%
Neath	7	6	85.7%
Nevern	79	60	75.9%
Ogmore	37	28	75.7%
Ogwen	58	50	86.2%
Rheidol	33	30	90.9%
Rhymney	1	1	100%
Seiont	10	7	70%
Taf	23	22	95.7%
Taff	19	18	94.7%
Tawe	9	8	88.9%
Teifi	626	543	86.7%
Tywi/Towy	388	372	95.9%
Usk	35	32	91.4%
Wye	11	11	100%
Ystwyth	39	36	92.3%
Other	22	21	95.5%
Total	3,510	3,197	91.1%

England and Wales sea trout rod catch total

Total sea trout rod catches for 2024:

• sea trout caught: 10,960
• sea trout released: 9,940
• percentage released: 90.7%

Salmon net catches

North East salmon net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Northumbria (D1)	T nets	0	0.00
Yorkshire (3-7)	T or J nets	24	58.06
Whole area	Total	24	58.06

Anglian salmon net catches

There were no salmon net catches in the Anglian net fishery in 2024.

South East (Southern) salmon net catches

There were no salmon net catches in the South East (Southern) net fishery in 2024.

South West salmon net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Poole Harbour	Seine nets	0	0.00
Teign	Seine nets	2	7.26
Whole area	Total	2	7.26

Midlands salmon net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Whole area	Lave nets	13	54.88
Whole area	Total	13	54.88

North West salmon net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Lune	Haaf nets	32	151.50
Kent	Lave nets	0	0.00
Leven	Lave nets	0	0.00
Eden and Esk (Solway)	Haaf nets	211	855.48
Eden	Coop traps	0	0.00
Whole area	Total	243	1,006.98

England total salmon net catches

Total salmon net catches for 2024:

• salmon total number: 243
• salmon total weight: 1,006.98kg

Wales salmon net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Wye	Lave nets	0	0.00
Tywi/Towy	Seine nets	12	54.43
Tywi/Towy	Coracle nets	42	172.37
Tywi/Towy	River total	54	226.80
Taf	Wade net	0	0.00
Taf	Coracle nets	0	0.00
Taf	River total	0	0.00
Cleddau (East and West)	Compass nets	1	2.72
Nevern	Seine nets	0	0.00
Teifi	Seine nets	0	0.00
Teifi	Coracle nets	67	307.99
Teifi	River total	67	307.99
Dyfi/Dovey	Seine nets	0	0.00
Mawddach	Seine nets	0	0.00
Conwy	Basket trap	0	0.00
Conwy	Seine nets	0	0.00
Conwy	River total	0	0.00
Wales	Total	122	537.51

England and Wales salmon net catch total

Total salmon net catches for 2024:

• salmon caught: 404
• salmon total weight: 1,664.68kg

Sea trout net catches

North East sea trout net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Northumbria (D1)	T nets	312	565.29
Yorkshire (3 to 7)	T or J nets	1,386	2,361.88
Whole area	Total	1,698	2,927.18

Anglian sea trout net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Coastal	Drift nets	41	49.90
Coastal	Other nets	19	30.84
Whole area	Total	60	80.74

South East (Southern) sea trout net catches

There were no sea trout net catches in the South East (Southern) net fishery in 2024.

South West sea trout net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Teign	Seine nets	90	129.16
Whole area	Total	90	129.16

Midlands sea trout net catches

There were no sea trout net catches in the Midlands net fishery in 2024.

North West sea trout net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Lune	Haaf nets	42	70.99
Kent	Lave nets	0	0.00
Leven	Lave nets	0	0.00
Solway	Haaf nets	112	133.36
Eden	Coop traps	0	0.00
Whole area	Total	154	204.34

England total sea trout net catches

Total number of sea trout net catches for 2024:

• sea trout caught: 2,002
• sea trout total weight: 3,341.42kg

Wales sea trout net catches

River or fishery	Fishing method	Total number	Total weight (kg)
Tywi/Towy	Seine nets	28	33.11
Tywi/Towy	Coracle nets	85	141.07
Tywi/Towy	River total	113	174.18
Taf	Wade net	0	0.00
Taf	Coracle nets	0	0.00
Taf	River total	0	0.00
Cleddau (East and West)	Compass nets	0	0.00
Nevern	Seine nets	0	0.00
Teifi	Seine nets	0	0.00
Teifi	Coracle nets	137	187.24
Teifi	River total	137	187.24
Dyfi/Dovey	Seine nets	4	4.54
Mawddach	Seine nets	0	0.00
Conwy	Basket trap	0	0.00
Conwy	Seine nets	6	7.71
Conwy	River total	6	7.71
Wales	Total	260	373.67

England and Wales total sea trout net catches

Total number of sea trout nets catches for 2024:

• sea trout total number: 2,262
• sea trout total weight: 3,715.09kg

5. Eel, smelt, and lamprey catches

The Environment Agency issues 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 authorised 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 2024. Elver fishers were authorised to fish between 15 February and 20 April 2024.

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.

England adult eel fishery – method, number of instruments, value and catch, 2024 season

There were 32 authorised eel fishers in 2024.

Method	Number of instruments	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
Fyke net or Small wingless traps	1,215	£2,330	22,280.20
Fixed Traps	2	£230	9.00
Total	1,217	£2,560	22,289.20

England elver fishery – number of nets, value and catch, 2024 season

There were 157 authorised elver fishers in 2024.

Number of dip nets	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
157	£13,345	1,305.00

England lamprey fishery – number of pots, value and catch, 2024 season

There were 2 authorised lamprey fishers in 2024.

Method	Number of instruments	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
Pot traps	60	£160.00	215

England smelt fishery – number of instruments, value and catch, 2024 season

There was one authorised smelt fisher in 2024.

Number of pots or fyke nets	Value (£)	Caught (kg)
50	£80.00	90