Action Plan: Freshwater Fish (group)

This plan includes;
Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar)
Brown and Sea Trout (Salmo trutta) and
River Lamprey (Lampetra fluviatilis)

Both adult salmon and sea trout migrate up rivers from the sea to breed in the fresh water. They have a very strong homing instinct, often returning to the very same stream in which they were born. The river lamprey will also normally travel up river to breed but pollution and artificial obstacles such as weirs or dams impede this migration. Alternatively, brown trout remain in the river for the duration of their lifespan. Resident brown trout requirements are exactly the same as those for sea trout with the exception that, not being migratory, they can be successful upstream of obstructions.

Salmon and trout rivers vary considerably in their ecological and hydrological characteristics and in the life-cycle strategies adopted by the fish within them.  Loss and decline of these species is often due to increased levels of pollution, the exploitation of adult fish by anglers and poachers (although salmon and trout are protected by legislation for the duration of the fishing season), and the obstruction of headwaters due to man-made obstacles.