#Angling - Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has published its report on the Asian clam survey at Lanesborough, Co Longford and the surrounding area, which has found that complete removal of the invasive species "is not feasible".

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, IFI said it was working closely with all relevant agencies as well as local community and angling groups to re-open the popular fishery after last month's invasive species scare.

All stakeholders have now been briefed with IFI's report and recommendations and management actions will be considered over the coming weeks.

IFI says an "enormous amount of work has taken place over a short period of time.

"It is clear from the findings of the survey that the population of Asian clam has already reached a stage where complete removal is not feasible."

It's expected that disinfection kits will be commissioned in the coming week to halt any further spread of Asian clam from the Lanesborough fishery.

Fishing is then set to resume thereafter, but anglers are reminded that fishing will remain closed until an official announcement from IFI.

The full report on the Lanesbourough Asian clam situation is available as a PDF to read or to download HERE.

#Angling - Proper management of farm watercourses – whether large rivers or small streams – is critical to ensuring high levels of biodiversity, according to a new leaflet jointly produced by Teagasc and Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI).

Speaking at the launch of Minding our Watercourses last week, Catherine Keena, countryside management specialist with Teagasc, emphasised the importance of farming in harmony with nature and biodiversity.

“The marketing of Irish farm produce relies on our ‘green’ environmental image," she said. "Watercourses contribute significantly to biodiversity, often being the most valuable habitat on the farm.”

IFI chief executive Dr Ciaran Byrne acknowledged the important role of farmers in the management of watercourses. “Smaller streams, even where no fish are apparent, are critical to the biodiversity of the catchment," he added.

There are 29 species of freshwater fish found in Ireland's waterways, with 14 native species present since the last Ice Age.

The leaflet shows there are different places for different species and life stages within watercourses: salmon and trout spawn on gravels in winter; lamprey spawn on gravels in late spring and summer; coarse fish lay their eggs in weedy parts of the channel; salmon and trout use riffles in the first year and move to deeper water as they grow larger; and juvenile lamprey live buried in silty margins of watercourses.

The new leaflet details best practice management of watercourses. Fencing and providing an alternative source of water is recommended as this avoids damage to the river bank and bed, reduces siltation, prevents fouling with pathogens and prevents the escape of nitrogen and phosphate.

Allowing native trees to grow along watercourses stabilises banks, creates a natural buffer zone, provides valuable habitat for flora and fauna, controls in-stream temperature and weed growth and provides shade and shelter for livestock. Buffer strips alongside watercourses intercept silt, nutrients and improve bank stability.

Farmers are reminded to watch out for and report invasive plant species which smother out smaller native species, which die back to leave large bare areas in winter, resulting in soil erosion.

Fish and their spawning grounds are protected under the Fisheries Acts (1959-2010). In-stream works should not be carried out without prior consultation and the approval of Inland Fisheries Ireland.

If maintaining watercourses, the advice is not to disturb the non-working bank slope; retain vegetation at the water’s edge; leave the working bank slope intact; remove vegetation and silt material from the open channel only; not to remove stone or gravel place spoil along the bank outside the bank-full line, spreading thinly; and leave a buffer of 20 metres at the downside end of a drain to act as a silt trap.

#Angling - Inland Fisheries Ireland says it is working closely with all relevant agencies as well as local community and angling groups to put "immediate measures" in place to re-open the Lanesborough fishery to angling after this month's Asian clam scare.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, IFI prohibited angling at the 'hot water' stretch in Lanesborough, Co Longford after confirmation that the invasive species Corbilcula fluminea was present downstream of the ESB plant on Lough Ree.

In a statement issued late last week (18 September), IFI says disinfection stations, funded by the ESB, will be provided – and managed within the local community – over this week and next.

Combined with "a responsible attitude by all water users", it is hoped this "will facilitate the resumption of angling activity in the community".

The relevant agencies involved – the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Waterways Ireland, ESB, Bord Na Mona, the Office of Public Works and Roscommon and Longford County Councils – unanimously agreed that a detailed scientific survey would be carried out by this weekend.

"This will accumulate quantitative data and the extent of the distribution of this invasive species to augment the knowledge from the preliminary assessments," says IFI, which adds that the outcome "will inform decisions on the collaborative actions required for the medium and long term interventions and strategies".

In addition, the inland fisheries agency underlined that "continued awareness and responsible behaviour by all water users is paramount to ensuring the work of the agencies involved has the best chance for success and the prevention of any further spread.

"In that regard, all of the agencies appeal to the respective stakeholders to continue to observe bio-security measures, seek advice on any planned activity and assist in the efforts to manage a very difficult situation."

#Angling - Screaming Reels celebrated its fourth win in a row at the Rosslare Small Boats Festival recently where it also set a new contest record.

In the best competition seen in many years, the boat from Rosie’s Sea Angling Club in Cork raised the bar with 32 different species of fish caught, beating 35 other boats from Britain and Ireland.

Sponsored by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI), Fáilte Ireland, DAIWA Sports UK, Lowrance and Sea Angler Magazine, the sea angling event – now in its 29th year – attracted more than 110 anglers from the Isle of Wight, Southport, Liverpool, Cornwall, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.

For the first time in many years, persistent high pressure over Ireland meant that competitors were blessed with sunshine and very light winds resulting in flat calm seas.

This gave them a great chance as they could launch their boats from Kilmore Quay every day, enabling them to target all species.

There were seven new boats to the competition from Wales, Cornwall and Scotland which marked a significant increase especially during challenging economic times.

And the competition was fierce, with boats recording up to 18 species on the first day and 16 on the days thereafter.

With Mediterranean-like weather conditions continuing all week and a very tight leaderboard, the finale was an exciting one, with 41 different types of fish species recorded.

The overall results demonstrated this, with first place going once again to Screaming Reels – Martyn Rayner, Seirt Shults and Neville Murphy – with 32 species for 26.1kg. They were followed closely in second place by Sea Witch (Rob Shefford, G Prothergoe and Paul O’Connor) from Penally in Wales with 29 species for 15.6kg. In third place was Nirvana (Richie Stead and Keith Pemberton) from the Wirral Boat Angling Club with 28 species for 18.35kg.

Of the 41 species, a number of streaked gurnard were caught, making it a new species for the competition. Other unusual fish caught were tadpole fish, black goby, black bream and painted ray.

The huge variety of species caught demonstrates the quality of the fishing in Wexford and indeed the very high standard of the competitors.

There were five specimen fish caught during the week (four in the competition). A specimen red mullet, close to the Irish record, was caught by Phil Dawson on board the Liverpool boat Seeker, which won him specimen of the week.

Other specimen fish included a Ballan wrasse of 2.3kg caught by David Jones from Wales, a black bream of 1kg caught by Eddie Butler from Kilkenny and a cuckoo wrasse of 0.56kg by Bert Williams from the Wirral in England. A pollack weighing 5.5kg was caught by Gavin Parker. All specimen fish are pending verification by the Irish Specimen Fish Committee.

The heaviest round fish was a conger eel of 8.65kg caught by Keith Gray from Liverpool on board the boat Seeker, and he was also awarded a perpetual trophy sponsored by IFI for the biggest fish caught of the week.

The heaviest flat fish was a turbot of 0.7kg caught by Richie Stead from Nirvana. James Cherry (16) from Dunshaughlin in Co Meath, aboard the Irish boat Fin Chaser, won the best juvenile of the competition with 18 species for 18.2kg.

Redmond’s The Bay in Rosslare Strand hosted the prize-giving ceremony which was a great success with outstanding hospitality. Other sponsors included Wigeon’s Rest Tackle Shop in Rosslare Strand, Shamrock Tackle and the Kilmore Quay Harbour office.

The total prize fund for the competition was €12,000 including fishing equipment and substantial monetary prizes and engraved trophies.

The prizes were presented by IFI director Brian Beckett, who congratulated all competitors and thanked them for visiting Wexford, for the invaluable contribution to the Irish economy that they make which is estimated to be in the region of €100,000.

In addition, over €1,000 was raised for the Oncology Unit at Wexford General Hospital and a presentation was made to them on behalf of the festival.

Next year’s event will take place from the 5-12 September 2015, and IFI is inviting all small boat anglers to take part.

#MarineScience - Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has officially opened a new laboratory at its research facility on its National Index Sea Trout Catchment (River Erriff) at Aasleagh Lodge in Leenane, Co Galway.

IFI says it will continue to invest resources in the Erriff research station, as the outputs from research conducted here will be vital for the future conservation and management of sea trout.

International sea trout expert Dr Graeme Harris, who gave the keynote address at the launch, congratulated IFI on its renewed focus on sea trout and emphasised the importance of world class science on this iconic species.

While research and data collection on both salmon and sea trout has taken place at the Erriff research facilities for over 30 years, a significant new research programme was initiated at the Erriff in 2014.

This new study, which saw the release of sea trout fitted with acoustic tags to sea, aims to investigate migration, distribution, habitat usage and survival of sea trout and salmon smolts in the marine environment on the west coast of Ireland.

Speaking at the launch, IFI chief executive Dr Ciaran Byrne said his organisation "is committed to applied scientific research that is designed to answer important conservation and management questions.

"We have prioritised research on sea trout and are fortunate to have these excellent facilities at this location. We rely on excellent data and scientific analysis which informs future management decisions.”

The Erriff fishery is located at the head of Killary Harbour near the village of Leenane in Connemara. The fishery was purchased by the Irish State from Lord Brabourne in 1982 and has since operated as a salmon and sea trout angling and research fishery.

The river has a large lake in its headwaters, Tawnyard Lough, and a downstream fish trap has operated at the lake exit since 1983. This facility allows assessment of sea trout stocks on an annual basis.

#asianclam – Inland Fisheries Ireland has prohibited angling at the 'hotwater' stretch in Lanesborough, Co. Longford. This emergency response it due to the confirmation of the presence of Asian Clam, Corbilcula fluminea, downstream of the ESB powerplant at the top of Lough Ree. Inland Fisheries Ireland has deployed a rapid response team to erect signs in the location prohibiting angling on this fishery until further notice.

Anglers must be aware of the dangers posed to other waters. Asian clam can spread on fishing equipment such as keep nets, landing nets, boats, rods and clothing. A decision has been made to close this section of the fishery as a temporary measure to avoid the accidental spread of Asian Clam to other waters. The fishery will reopen at the earliest opportunity once bio-security measures for anglers can be introduced. These measures will include disinfection facilities for all angling equipment.

Inland Fisheries Ireland officers received a report this morning, Thursday 11th September 2014, and responded immediately to the popular fishing area. Dr. Joe Caffrey, a Senior Research Officer with Inland Fisheries Ireland, attended the location also and confirmed the presence of the invasive species this afternoon. An initial assessment further downstream did not show signs of a presence of the invasive. A full assessment will be carried out and a meeting is scheduled to take place on Monday 15th September between the relevant agencies to agree the next steps, to ensure that there no further spread towards Lough Ree occurs.

Like the Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha), Asian Clam has the ability to become highly invasive in a short period of time and at high densities it can alter the food web and compete with native mussel species. Asian clam are known to aggressively out compete native invertebrate communities, limit phytoplankton biomass, biofoul water intakes, alter benthic habitats, add biologically available nitrogen and phosphorus to systems, and impact aesthetic and recreational values of public beaches, lake front properties and swimming areas. Their high rates of filtration, metabolism, reproduction, tolerance to wide ranges of habitats, and juvenile dispersal allows Asian clam to aggressively expand ranges and to rapidly re‐invade areas; limiting management, reducing restoration efforts and impacting native benthic communities. Asian clam are capable of both filter feeding (feeding from the water) and pedal feeding (feeding directly from the sediment).

A fish stock survey carried out by Inland Fisheries Ireland on Lough Ree in March 2014 also included grab sampling for the Asian Clam invasive in 200 sites over the entire lake. No Asian Clam was found at that time.Asian Clam invasive species found in Longford – Angling prohibited until further notice

Inland Fisheries Ireland has prohibited angling at the 'hotwater' stretch in Lanesborough, Co. Longford. This emergency response it due to the confirmation of the presence of Asian Clam, Corbilcula fluminea, downstream of the ESB powerplant at the top of Lough Ree. Inland Fisheries Ireland has deployed a rapid response team to erect signs in the location prohibiting angling on this fishery until further notice.

Anglers must be aware of the dangers posed to other waters. Asian clam can spread on fishing equipment such as keep nets, landing nets, boats, rods and clothing. A decision has been made to close this section of the fishery as a temporary measure to avoid the accidental spread of Asian Clam to other waters. The fishery will reopen at the earliest opportunity once bio-security measures for anglers can be introduced. These measures will include disinfection facilities for all angling equipment.

Inland Fisheries Ireland officers received a report this morning, Thursday 11th September 2014, and responded immediately to the popular fishing area. Dr. Joe Caffrey, a Senior Research Officer with Inland Fisheries Ireland, attended the location also and confirmed the presence of the invasive species this afternoon. An initial assessment further downstream did not show signs of a presence of the invasive. A full assessment will be carried out and a meeting is scheduled to take place on Monday 15th September between the relevant agencies to agree the next steps, to ensure that there no further spread towards Lough Ree occurs.

Like the Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha), Asian Clam has the ability to become highly invasive in a short period of time and at high densities it can alter the food web and compete with native mussel species. Asian clam are known to aggressively out compete native invertebrate communities, limit phytoplankton biomass, biofoul water intakes, alter benthic habitats, add biologically available nitrogen and phosphorus to systems, and impact aesthetic and recreational values of public beaches, lake front properties and swimming areas. Their high rates of filtration, metabolism, reproduction, tolerance to wide ranges of habitats, and juvenile dispersal allows Asian clam to aggressively expand ranges and to rapidly re‐invade areas; limiting management, reducing restoration efforts and impacting native benthic communities. Asian clam are capable of both filter feeding (feeding from the water) and pedal feeding (feeding directly from the sediment).

A fish stock survey carried out by Inland Fisheries Ireland on Lough Ree in March 2014 also included grab sampling for the Asian Clam invasive in 200 sites over the entire lake. No Asian Clam was found at that time.

#Angling - Plans are afoot to turn Roughan Lough in Co Tyrone into a training lake for Northern Ireland's angling team, as the Tyrone Times reports.

New fishing stands and access for the differently abled are among the plans of the new Roughan Anging Club, which has a 10-year lease on the 50-acre lake that was until three decades ago stocked by the northern region predecessor to Inland Fisheries Ireland.

Reputed to be full of large pike, its intended that the waters will be stocked with rainbow trout and make it a new destination for anglers across Ireland and beyond.

The Tyrone Times has more on the story HERE.

#Angling - Young Limerick anglers were left in the lurch earlier this month after a popular trout fishing competition failed to secure sponsorship for 2014, as the Limerick Leader reports.

Some 50 children, many from disadvantaged areas, had expected to take up their rods and reels for the rainbow trout challenge at O'Briensbridge on 9 August.

But with less than two weeks to go, organisers received word that their application for sponsorship by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) had been declined.

IFI had sponsored last year's successful event, and it was understood by the Limerick and District Anglers Association that this year's request was encouraged by the State body for Ireland's inland and coastal angling resources.

However, IFI Shannon River Basin District director Amanda Mooney said that "no request is guaranteed and it is always subject to funding that we have available and staff resources."

The Limerick Leader has more on the story HERE.

#Angling - Tyrones's Fintona waters will come alive this weekend for the All-Ireland Junior Fly-Fishing Championships on Sunday 31 August, as the Ulster Herald reports.

Kicking off in Donegal on Saturday 30 August, Ireland's best young anglers aged between 15 and 18 will compete on some of the same lakes that hosted last year's Youth Fly Fishing Worlds in the border region, and are set to host the best in the world again next year.

The Ulster Herald has much more on the story HERE.

#Angling - National policies for the management of trout, pike and bass, were launched today (Friday 22 August) by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI).

“These policies are the first national species policies to be issued from IFI and in this regard represent a new era for fisheries management in Ireland," said Brendan O'Mahony, chair of the State agency responsible for the protection, conservation, management and promotion of Ireland’s inland fisheries and sea angling resources.

"The policies will provide for the better conservation and management of bass, pike and trout in Ireland and will help ensure sustainability of stocks into the future," he added.

"In addition, they will allow for improved angling economic impacts and help to sustain and improve the many jobs that are supported by recreational angling in Ireland.”

The three policy documents have been formulated, through a rigorous consultation process, by groups comprising fisheries scientists, angling federations and industry representatives.

The recommendations will now be brought forward and put into practice by IFI. Where required, IFI will seek legislative changes to underpin and support the policies, which will be reviewed after a period of three years.

The main recommendations put forward include:

Bass: a reduction in the daily angling bag limit from two to one fish in any 24 hour period; an increase in the minimum landing size; and a review of the closed season.

Pike: in designated, managed wild brown trout fisheries, the current bye-law is recommended to be amended to prohibit the killing of any pike greater than or equal to 85 cm in length; all larger rod-caught pike should be returned to the water alive; in all other waters of the State an angler will be permitted to take and kill one pike of less than or equal to 50 cm in length (as per the existing bye-law); additionally, the policy calls for further research into pike movement and transfer programmes.

Trout: a national minimum size limit; national bag limits; designation of a number of lakes and rivers sections as wild brown trout fisheries; in addition to other measures.

IFI chief executive Dr Ciaran Byrne added: “I would like to thank all who assisted with the formulation of these policies, and I would also like to acknowledge the passion and understanding that all of the groups have for their species of interest: the environment; habitat; and pressures that they face.

"The challenge now is to implement these policies through the work of IFI, angling practices, and where necessary, with legislative support. I look forward to progressing these policies with the same collaborative approach as used in their formulation.”

For more information and to access the policy documents, visit www.fisheriesireland.ie.