Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has published a first-ever book on aquatic plants, featuring 401 different Irish river, lake and pond plant species.

The 576-page Aquatic Plants in Ireland-A Photographic Guide identifies flora in freshwater habitats across the country — using concise text and more than 1,200 full-colour photographs and diagrams.

Dr Ronan Matson, co-author and research officer at IFI said: “Aquatic environments are particularly vulnerable to threats posed by biodiversity loss, climate change and the spread of invasive species.

“The first step in mitigating their impact is to accurately identify the species that exist within these fragile ecosystems.

“This comprehensive Irish aquatic plant encyclopaedia is unique. And in it the diversity of our lakes, reservoirs, ponds, canals, rivers, streams, ditches, bog pools and wetlands are more than matched by the diverse plant species that call these habitats home.”

Flowering rush along the margins of a pond | Credit: IFI

Aquatic Plants in Ireland-A Photographic Guide also includes a number of invasive alien plant species that are rapidly expanding their range in, and along, Ireland’s watercourses — and having serious adverse effects on native habitats and biodiversity.

The guide was funded by IFI with support from INVAS Biosecurity Ltd and compiled by three experienced Irish field ecologists: Prof Joe Caffrey, Dr Ronan Matson, and Dr Rossa Ó Briain.

Dr Matthew Jebb, director of the National Botanic Gardens of Ireland said: “This new book, at last, fills a genuine gap in the literature.

“It allows the specialist and non-specialist to identify practically every aquatic plant species that grows in, or alongside, Ireland’s freshwater habitats.”

The broad ecology of plant species is summarised, and maps also illustrate their national distribution.

The full-colour publication costs €40 for the softback edition and €70 for the hardback version, excluding postage.

Members of the public who would like to purchase Aquatic Plants in Ireland-A Photographic Guide can contact Dr Ronan Matson at [email protected].

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has welcomed the outcome of a case it brought against Uisce Éireann involving sewage pollution of the Cavan town river.

A fine of €2,000, plus costs and expenses of €3,197, were imposed at a hearing on the matter at Cavan District Court on Friday 1 December.

It comes after IFI had previously secured prosecution in October against the State water utility for pollution of the Ballinagh River in Co Cavan which killed 160 fish.

The court heard that in the wake of ongoing issues at the Uisce Éireann wastewater treatment plant at Ballinagh, senior IFI fisheries environmental officer Ailish Keane had taken samples for analysis following the pollution event in Cavan town on 3 February this year.

These test samples, taken downstream from the plant, showed high levels of pollutants, with large amounts of sewage fungus — bacteria, fungus and algae that reduce oxygen levels — visible on the bed of the river.

Commenting on the verdict, Dr Milton Matthews, director of IFI’s North-Western River Basin District said: “We welcome the outcome in this case. The presence of sewage fungus in the river is indicative of chronic organic pollution of the Cavan town river at this location, rather than an isolated incident — with significant impact on fish, invertebrates and all aquatic life in the river.

“There were significant breaches of the licence emission limits for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) — oxygen required to break down organic matter in the water — and high ammonia levels.

“Sample results taken at the location indicated that ammonia levels were over 115 times higher than permitted discharge limits, and eight times higher than permissible for BOD limits as stipulated for this treatment plant.”

The conviction was secured under Section 171 of the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act 1959 — legislation regarding protection of fishing waters from harmful pollutants.

Members of the public are encouraged to report instances of water pollution, illegal fishing, habitat destruction or fish kills to IFI’s confidential number at 0818 34 74 24.

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has welcomed the publication on Thursday (14 December) of the Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action’s Report on the examination of recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly report on biodiversity loss.

Speaking at Leinster House, IFI chief executive Francis O’Donnell said: “Inland Fisheries Ireland, as a key State environmental agency, is a major stakeholder in protecting and restoring biodiversity in Ireland’s freshwater and coastal waters.

“I welcome the report and its recommendations, and was pleased to provide oral testimony to the committee.

“IFI’s objectives are reflected closely in the committee’s own recommendations. We want additional powers and resourcing for enforcement officers. And we seek enhanced cross-collaboration between relevant State agencies to better respond to both wildlife and fisheries crime, and pollution incidents.”

O’Donnell continued: “Our call for a review of sanctions and penalties associated with breaking environmental laws is also echoed in this report.

“Separately, with the support of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, Inland Fisheries Ireland has developed a National Barriers Mitigation programme. This initiative will remove, where possible, and mitigate the environmental impact of river barriers for fish species.”

O’Donnell added that IFI “is committed to expanding our efforts to restore and protect our environment and enforce legislation where necessary, particularly where it can support the restoration of aquatic biodiversity”.

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has been awarded first prize in the ‘Leadership in Public Sector Decarbonisation and Energy Efficiency’ category at the Sustainable Energy Association of Ireland’s (SEAI) 20th Annual Energy Awards ceremony recently held at the Mansion House in Dublin.

The award recognised IFI’s efforts since 2009 to improve its energy efficiency by 44.5 per cent, thanks to initiatives suhc as the installation of 18 solar PV systems, the addition of 52 electric vehicles to its fleet and the development of a national EV charging network at 32 locations to date.

Brian Beckett, director of IFI Dublin said: “We are grateful and humbled to be among Ireland’s leading businesses and State agencies in decarbonisation in Ireland today… This award recognises years of tireless effort by all of the IFI team.

“Sincere thanks and congratulations are due to all IFI staff for their drive and commitment to energy efficiency improvement and a sustainable future for all. The commitment and leadership shown by our board and senior leadership team matched by the ambition and creativity of our local and national Green Teams will ensure that we reach and exceed our decarbonisation targets to 2030 and beyond.

“We’re convinced that creativity, collaboration, partnership and innovation are the keys to unlocking a sustainable future for all and we welcome all opportunities to work with those who have common goals in this critical area.”

This year at the SEAI Energy Awards there were 40 finalists from 114 applications, who collectively reduced energy consumption by 16%, saving €50 million. The renewable energy produced by the 2023 entrants is equivalent to powering over 400,000 homes per year.

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) is to provide more than €1 million in new grants to support fish and their habitats in rivers nationwide.

IFI’s Habitats and Conservation Scheme funding call for 2024 is now live and expressions of interest can be made up to Friday 15 December.

Since 2016, IFI has given more than €6 million in grants to over 280 projects throughout the country under the programme.

Barry Fox, head of operations at IFI said: “The conservation and protection of Atlantic salmon and sea trout is an integral part of IFI’s progressive and sustainable fisheries management operations.

“This funding will improve fish habitats and increase juvenile abundance of salmon and trout. A total of €1,050,000 is being allocated in 2024.

“We are investing in transformative conservation projects that have a strong focus on outcomes.

“Priority will be given to proposals that rehabilitate damaged river habitats, improve water quality and help fish traverse physical in-stream barriers, like weirs.”

Replenishment of spawning gravels in a drained channel near Partry, Co Mayo — one of the projects supported by IFI in 2023 | Credit: IFI

IFI’s Habitats and Conservation Fund comprise two schemes — the Salmon and Sea Trout Rehabilitation, Conservation and Protection Fund, and the Midlands Fisheries Fund. These competitive initiatives are financed from salmon and sea trout angling and commercial fishing licences in Ireland, as well as the sale of fishing permits.

In 2023, the Salmon and Sea Trout Rehabilitation, Conservation and Protection Fund provided a total of €99,273 to 24 projects in counties Cork, Offaly, Donegal, Galway, Clare, Kerry, Kildare, Sligo, Mayo, Meath, Wicklow and Westmeath.

Up to €50,000 is available through the Midlands Fisheries Fund to support angling and sustainable development works in the midlands fisheries group permit area.

Eligible angling clubs, fishery owners and other stakeholders are invited to express their interest in applying for funding. Full application details and comprehensive information can be found on the IFI website HERE.

Angelwelt Berlin is the leading trade fair on the trendy topic of angling in Germany and has now established itself as the most popular meeting place for sport and leisure anglers at both national and international level in Germany.

This year will be Ireland’s fourth time attending the Angelwelt show, which is dedicated to all types of fishing — game, sea, pike and coarse — but with the main emphasis being on lure fishing in both fresh and saltwater. There will also be fly fishing and boating sections.

This promotional show has a general angling audience and provides industry members with a great platform to promote the Irish angling product to German anglers in Germany’s capital city Berlin.

For more details on the Angling Ireland stand at Angelwelt and how to secure your spot, see the Inland Fisheries Ireland website HERE.

Following a competitive tender process launched earlier this year, O’Connor Sutton Cronin (OCSC) were appointed as the consulting engineers to undertake a range of technical assessments and prepare an options report for fish passage improvement works at Annacotty Weir on the lower Mulkear River outside Limerick.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) is leading the Annacotty Fish Passage Project as the State agency with responsibility for fish in rivers such as the Mulkear.

The consultants’ options report will consider all environmental and engineering circumstances that are present at the site. OCSC have undertaken a number of assessments over the last few months, with a view to preparing an options report in early 2024.

The options report will be based on several environmental and technical surveys, using a recognised decision matrix, together with a stakeholder decision matrix. The options report will be presented to the public for consideration by all stakeholders with a view to bringing a proposal forward for planning permission.

In advance of any permanent works taking place, IFI had planned to carry out temporary works during the summer with the aim of improving passage for eels and lampreys. However, high water levels hampered attempts to install these measures, and water levels remained too high since IFI received the materials.

The proposed temporary works follows advice from specialists within IFI’s research division which suggests the installation of bristle mats and lamprey tiles will help facilitate eel and lamprey passage.

IFI says it plans to install these measures when water levels are at a suitably low level to allow safe access to the weir to install the materials.

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has recorded two rare recaptures of tagged Atlantic bluefin tuna as the angling season for these fish nears its closure on Sunday 12 November.

The first recaptured bluefin was tagged and released originally by skipper Adrian Molloy on 2 October 2020 in Donegal Bay. Three years later, the same fish was caught again on 11 September this year off the north-east coast of Spain.

The second bluefin was originally tagged and released by skipper Tony Santry on 23 August this year off the Kerry coast and recaptured just 22 days later on 14 September off the west French coast. This Atlantic bluefin tuna had travelled a distance of 750km in three weeks, data showed.

Dr William Roche of IFI said: “Atlantic bluefin tuna are leviathans of the sea, and a bucket list species for many anglers.

“For the first time in the five years of this programme, two recaptures have been recorded — that’s two from over 1,600 fish tagged.

One of the first two Atlantic bluefin tuna caught of the 2023 Tuna CHART season, captured, tagged and released off the Irish coast in late July

“To date, 1,619 bluefin tuna have been tagged by skippers along the north west, west and south coast of Ireland since the Tuna CHART programme, an inter-agency Government research initiative started in 2019.”

Recreational angling for Atlantic bluefin tuna is technically prohibited in Ireland. However, under the Tuna CHART programme, authorised charter skippers can catch, tag and release bluefin during the open season with the help of anglers as ‘citizen scientists’ on board.

This scientific tuna fishery targets the largest tuna species to collect information on their sizes, and where and when they occur in Irish waters.

The largest tuna tagged to date in the programme was 2.75m long, and weighed an estimated 372kg.

In 2022, 382 Atlantic bluefin tuna were caught, tagged, and released around the Irish coast by authorised skippers.

Skippers willingly provide their expertise to the programme and can charge anglers for bluefin tuna trips on their vessels.

Measuring, tagging and releasing bluefin tuna is carried out in the water alongside the boat, which progresses slowly at speeds of 2-3 knots, to ensure the fish remains in the best possible condition.

Bluefin are caught in area that extends from approximately 1km from the shore out to a maximum of about 20km.

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has taken part in a tagging project for salmon that tracks their epic sea swim from Greenland to Europe.

IFI researcher Glen Wightman represented the agency in an EU-funded programme in the east Greenland settlement of Kuummiut, tagging salmon as they returned to their European rivers of origin.

Wrightman collaborated with scientists from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) to investigate the feeding and return migratory behaviour of young Atlantic salmon as they left the Arctic Sea.

Dr William Roche, senior research officer at IFI said: “This study comprises novel research into a fish species that’s in worrying decline. It’s being conducted because the marine phase of a salmon’s life is where knowledge of its survival is limited.

“We are making use of the strong homing trait of salmon. The aim is to fill a data gap because detailed information about salmon behaviour and migration routes in the ocean is scarce.

Panoramic view of Kuummiut settlement in south-eastern Greenland, the base location for the salmon-tagging project | Credit: Glen Wightman/IFI

“It is hoped that the scientific information gleaned will provide further clues into the complex question of poor survival of salmon at sea.

“We are seeking more data on the return journeys these salmon undertake, and the numbers that actually make it back to the rivers where they are from.”

Sample salmon were implanted with a tracking device during this pilot phase of the study and monitored rivers in Europe will be checked for returns of these particular fish.

The new programme is focused on capturing live pre-adult salmon in their feeding areas on the east coast of Greenland.

Led by DTU’s Professor Kim Aarestrup, Dr Niels Jepsen, and IFI’s Glen Wightman, it is being carried out under the Smoltrack project, coordinated by the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation.

Traditional Irish salmon flies commissioned 121 years ago for the Cork International Exhibition in 1902 will now feature in a new museum display on the same site in Cork.

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI), custodians of the vintage collection, released an online picture book featuring the rare fishing flies last year, as previously reported on Afloat.ie, and has now collaborated with the Cork Public Museum to bring this exhibition to the public.

It will comprise antique fishing equipment kindly loaned by Rory O’Hanlon, digitised angling records from the Cork Trout Anglers Club and a display with information and historic photos of the 1902 exhibition and fishing on the River Lee.

Shane O’Reilly, angling advisor with IFI said: “We are delighted to join forces with the Cork Public Museum on this project and hope the general public will be hooked!

“We are making these flies accessible to new audiences, by bringing them back to the site of the original exhibition — in Cork’s Fitzgerald’s Park — where they were first viewed 121 years ago.

“The Cork Collection of Salmon Flies represents a rich and colourful legacy from our Irish angling heritage. These traditional flies, created with feathers, fur, tinsel and floss, are considered as masterpieces of the craft.

“Last year’s IFI digital publication of the collection generated widespread interest from fly-fishing and fly-tying enthusiasts both in Ireland, and around the world.

“Salmon have been, and remain, an iconic wild Irish fish. However, they now face many challenges to survive in Ireland.

“IFI works proactively with anglers and local communities to protect and conserve Ireland’s wild salmon, and their habitats, for the benefit of future generations.”

The exhibition was officially opened by the Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr Kieran McCarthy, in the Cork Public Museum on Thursday 26 October, where historian Dr Tom Spalding also spoke about the 1902-1903 exhibition. The collection will be hosted in the museum for the remainder of 2023 and into 2024.