Pacific Pink Salmon

In July 2017, Fisheries Management Scotland issued an advice note to alert District Salmon Fishery Boards (DSFBs), Fishery Trusts, anglers and others on what to do if they encounter pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) in Scottish waters.

Fisheries Management Scotland (FMS) is taking the lead, in close collaboration with Marine Scotland, on coordinating the collection of information on captures and sightings in Scotland. FMS has informed us of a recent capture of a pink salmon on the south coast of Norway by an angler. It is understood that a pink salmon may also have been caught in commercial nets in NE England.

It is important to emphasise that small numbers of pink salmon have turned up in UK rivers for several decades and therefore this is not a unique phenomenon. However, 2017 was unprecedented in the numbers of fish captured across the UK and also in Norway and Finland. Captures have also been reported in Iceland, Denmark and Germany. A number of fish, captured in at least 17 Scottish rivers, had been reported to Fisheries Management Scotland by DSFBs and Fisheries Trusts.

We are asking everyone to remain vigilant to the possibility of these fish turning up again this year and to record any sightings or captures, and where possible, retain the fish.

If you are confident that you have captured a pacific pink salmon the fish should be humanely despatched and retained. All fish should be passed to the relevant personnel at the DSFB or trust who will arrange for further inspection and analysis.

If you catch a pink salmon, please contact Brian Davidson on [email protected] or Dr Alan Wells on [email protected].