Irish salmon anglers will have 48 fully open and 33 catch-and-release rivers to fish in 2023
The Moy is one of 48 rivers to be fully open to salmon angling in 2023
New byelaws that came into effect on January 1 in Ireland will see that 81 rivers will be open for salmon and sea trout angling in the 2023 season.
The Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan, has approved legislation saying, “The general improvements in stocks from 2022 have been maintained for 2023. However, collective effort and persistence are required to see the state of all individual river stocks improve over time. The stocks themselves are completely dependent on everybody increasing our efforts in facing up to environmental, climate and biodiversity impacts from human interventions.”
Irish fisheries legislation is built on management advice from Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) in relation to its individual scientific assessments on the 140-plus genetically individual wild salmon stocks of Ireland, which are carried out every year by the Technical Expert Group on Salmon (TEGOS) – an all-island independent scientific group comprising experts from a range of bodies.
Of the 81 open rivers 48 of them will be fully open, with a further 33 open to ‘catch and release’.
“This facilitates careful management of this important natural resource, for which conservation and sustainability are paramount”, said Mr Ryan.
Closed
It means that 66 rivers are to be closed to fishing as they have no sustainable surplus available. these rivers include the Upper Liffey, Owenduff, Upper Lee, 11 rivers in Kerry, the Ingah and Upper Shannon, the Knock and Spiddal in Galway, Lough na Furnace, the Owengarve, Grange, Erne an Eske in Ballyshannon, 11 rivers in the Letterkenny District and the Flurry and Castletown rivers of Dundalk.
Catch-and-release
Catch-and-release only rivers include: The Lower Liffey, Slaney (restricted to April 1 to August 31), Suir, Nore, Ardigeen, Inny, Kerry Blackwater, Mulkear, Lower Shannon, Screebe, Owenwee, Cloonaghmore, Garvogue (including river Bonet an Lough Gill), five Ballyshannon rivers, the Lackagh (closed until May 11) and Gweebarra (catch-and-release until May 11), the Boyne, and the Glyde and the Dee in Dundalk.
Irrespective of the restrictions in place for salmon (any size) and sea trout (over 40cm), the use of worms as bait in angling for all other fish species apply in certain closed and catch-and-release rivers. Anglers may only use single or double barbless hooks where these restrictions apply.
Fully open
The fully open rivers are: Blackwater (Munster); Glenshelane; Finisk; Bandon; Lower Lee; Ilen; Mealagh; Owvane; Coomhola; Glengarriff; Roughty; Sheen; Laune; Cottoners; Watervillle/Cummeragh/Currane; Sneem; Caragh; Owenmore R; Maine; Croanshagh; Ferta; Corrib; Cashla; Ballynahinch (Owenmore); Bundorragha (Delphi); Erriff; Culfin; Dawros; Owenglin (Clifden); Bunowen; Carrownisky; Carrowmore Lake; Owenduff; Newport River (including Lough Beltra and Crumpaun River); Owenmore; Moy; Easkey; Ballysadare; Drumcliff River and Glencar Lake; Drowes; Owenwee (Yellow); Gweebarra (from May 12); Clady; Gweedore (Crolly); Tullaghobegley; Crana; Owenea; Owentocker; and Fane.
The Drowse opened on January 1 with plenty of anglers but nothing was landed on the first day of the new season.