Posted on May 09, 2023
The latest salmon counter update for the Test and Itchen has just been released by the EA.
Counter data from 2022 for the two rivers suggest that salmon returning stock estimates are the 4th lowest and lowest respectively for the period 1990 - 2022.
For the Itchen, the returning salmon stock in 2022 was estimated to be at only 20% of the conservation limit - that is 20% of the number of returning adults needed to maintain the population.
Posted on April 25, 2023
The campaigning environmental charity River Action UK has launched a new Charter for Rivers.
Posted on April 24, 2023
We are deeply sorry to report the death of Oliver Edwards – one of the most skilled and influential all-round fly-fishers of the modern era – at the age of 85 on Saturday 22 April.
Posted on April 19, 2023
Ahead of Invasive Species Week 2023, the Environment Agency and Angling Trust (AT) have once again announced £75,000 of funding, through the Angling Improvement Fund, for angling clubs to tackle invasive non-native plant and invertebrate species (INNS) which threaten the health of their fisheries.
Posted on April 04, 2023
Amazing news: we’ve just heard from the World Fish Migration Foundation that our Snake Lane fish passage project has made it to the top 5 contenders for the Dam Removal Europe Award 2022, which has just opened for a public vote.
Posted on March 27, 2023
Our Spring Auction closed on 26 March with a record final total of £92,622.
Director Shaun Leonard said:
‘We are utterly overwhelmed by the support shown by our donors, bidders, members and supporters in raising a record £92,622. All our auction lots are given to the WTT for free, and because we run our own auction website, 100% of the money, apart from any credit card fees, will be put to good use for wild trout and our river and lakes. Thank you so much.’
Posted on March 23, 2023
The money raised in our Spring Auction is crucial to what we do – it’s our single most important fundraising event of the year. We run the auction with one (very busy) member of staff and one (also very busy) volunteer. All our auction lots are given to us for free, and because we run our own auction website, 100% of the money, apart from any credit card fees, goes to support our work.
Posted on March 21, 2023
On Thursday 23 March at 7.30, biologist Jonny Archer will present the findings of a brown trout tracking project on the River Tweed. The presentation will take place via Zoom and in person at the Ian Gregg River Academy, Tweed Foundation, Melrose TD6 9DJ. Please email Jonny Archer for details of the Zoom link. jarcher@tweedfoundation.org.uk
Posted on March 17, 2023
The Wild Trout Trust Spring Auction 2023 is now live on our auction website, with brilliant fishing across the UK, Ireland and overseas, as well as shooting, art, books, experiences, fishing tackle and hand-tied flies.
Thanks to our supporters’ generosity, this year we’re offering 401 lots with a full range of starting prices from £8 to £650.You can bid through our auction website, like an eBay auction, or we can bid for you – just email Christina via office@wildtrout.org with a list of lot numbers and your maximum bid for each, before noon on 26 March. Lots start to close from 4pm that day
Posted on March 14, 2023
A report from Natural England has been published with an assessment of the wild beaver population of the River Avon (Somerset / Bristol) and its tributaries.
The report estimates that around 50 beavers (excluding kits) are living wild in the catchment and their territories currently occupy between 4-11% of the available bankside in the watercourses.They say: 'Few management issues were noted, probably because the population is in the early establishment phase'.
For lots more information about beavers and their impact, go to the Beaver Resource Hub on this website.
Posted on February 27, 2023
The WTT auction catalogue is now out and all the lots are available to view now on our auction website. Bidding opens 17 March and closes from 4pm on 26 March.
Everything you need to know - how get a print or PDF version of the catalogue, how to view the lots, how to register to bid and how to bid online or by post - is on our auction website.
With over 400 lots it is our biggest ever auction. Guide prices from £8 to £920.
Posted on February 22, 2023
We have a new area in our shop New to You: Fishy Stuff where we hope you will find an item you’ve been longing for – fishing tackle, flies, books, maybe art – all gifted to us by our generous supporters to help us raise funds for wild trout conservation.
In the shop at the moment we have fly-tying hooks and materials, boxes of flies and good quality rods and reels including a Hardy Conquest centrepin reel, an Orvis Battenkill IV fly reel and a B James Avocet cane trotting rod.
If you’d like to donate to us in this way, we’d be delighted to accept good quality items that need a new home. Please contact Christina in the WTT office on office@wildtrout.org
Posted on February 20, 2023
The Chalk Streams First coalition (CSF) of eNGOs*, led by the gargantuan efforts of WTT founder and V-P, Charles Rangeley-Wilson OBE, has responded to various water company management plans with a proposal to give our magical chalk streams first use of the water in their aquifers, rather than the current model of abusive abstraction in the headwaters.
The idea comes from the exhaustive work of expert hydrologist, John Lawson, commissioned by the Wild Trout Trust, Rivers Trust and Angling Trust, to investigate shifting points of abstraction towards the lower end of catchments. John’s work demonstrates that abstraction in the headwaters is robbing rivers across entire regions of critical flow, without which the streams simply cannot function naturally.
Vitally, we do not propose the Chalk Streams First model as the only solution to England’s increasing water supply crisis, but as part of a multi-dimensional response to the crisis, including more reservoirs; however, it is a solution that could be implemented (we argue) by 2030, well ahead of the other options.
Posted on February 06, 2023
There will be a conference on dam removal at the Old Trafford cricket ground in Manchester, 18 & 19 May 2023. WTT’s Tim Jacklin will be speaking about his Snake Lane project on the River Ecclesbourne and also about Jonny Grey’s project to remove Scotton Weir on the River Nidd. The conference is organised by Dam Removal Europe and bookings can be made on their website.
Posted on February 06, 2023
The application window is open from 6th February 2023, closing on 13th March 2023.
The Rivers & Wetlands Community Days programme is back for 2023, funding practical action by local people to make things better for their rivers and wetlands, now and into the future. Funded by Thames Water and run by a group including also the Angling Trust, Environment Agency, Institute of Fisheries Management and Wild Trout Trust, we’re looking to support projects big and small, from a couple of practical days with volunteers, through to larger-scale improvement work for rivers and wetlands.
We welcome applications from local, non-Governmental community groups working in the Thames Water catchment, including rivers and wildlife trusts, flood groups, countryside/catchment partnerships, angling clubs and conservation volunteers.
