#ANGLING - Henry's Tackle Shop in Ballybough is conducting a countrywide survey to determine the extent of the decline of bass activity around Ireland's coastline.
According to the shop's Henry Lynam and Pat Daly, the last two years have seen some unusually low bass activity on many coasts.
As part of their national survey, they are asking anglers to return log book pages to measure the quality of the bass fishing across Ireland this year.
"Bass are a species protected by by-laws," they wrote on their blog. "The quality of protection afforded by these laws has varied but have mainly been sufficient to help the stock recover from a serious crash in the 1980s to a reasonable level over many years.
"We fear now that with the double edged sword of financial stress increasing the number of poachers and decreasing budget for fisheries protection that perhaps bass are coming under pressure again."
Other factors they note include the year's weather extremes and the large and the unusual northward movement of local plankton.
"Whatever the cause we can only observe and record the resulting facts for presentation to someone who is in a position to act."
The warning comes as calls are being made to reopen Ireland's bass fisheries for commercial fishing. Anglers are asked to return their bass angling log book pages at the end of the bass fishing season to Henry's Tackle Shop, 19 Ballybough Road, Dublin 3.
