More salmon return - population remains endangered

The number of salmon returning to Saxony is higher than it has been for years. For the first time since 2017, the number is in double figures, according to the State Office for Environment, Agriculture and Geology (LfULG). By 14 November, 15 salmon and 19 spawning pits had been detected during monitoring in the spawning waters of the Upper Elbe catchment area in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains.

In 2017, there were still 41 returnees, but in subsequent years the number fell to a single-digit level. The fisheries experts at the LfULG believe that one of the causes was long-term construction work on a weir in the lower reaches of the Elbe near Hamburg, which made it more difficult for fish to ascend. Low water levels and water temperatures that are often too high until late autumn also make for unfavourable ascent conditions, according to the report.

Once a mass product: Elbe salmon

Saxony's program to reintroduce Atlantic salmon began in 1995 with the first stocking of Swedish and Irish salmon fry. Since then, well over a thousand spawning fish have reportedly returned. Nevertheless, their numbers are not sufficient to ensure the natural reproduction of the stock, neither in Saxony nor in the entire Elbe catchment area.

Until the beginning of the 19th century, salmon fishing was one of the most profitable branches of Elbe fishing. From 1815 onwards, overfishing and water pollution led to a steady reduction in catch numbers. After the Second World War, the original Elbe salmon was extinct.