Sulwath Connections

Galloway Bankside Habitat

Partner:

• Galloway Fisheries Trust 

   

  As part of the Galloway Bankside Habitat project, GFT have completed a variety of habitat improvement works to varying degrees across all six rivers involved in the project (Piltanton Burn, River Luce, River Cree, Water of Fleet, Kirkcudbrightshire Dee and River Urr).  Below is an idea of the types of works being routinely carried out, starting on the Cree where extensive work has been completed on the Castle Burn. 

  If you are familiar with Penninghame pond north of Newton Stewart, you may have noticed the Castle Burn; probably at the outfall of the pond where a small fish pass sits below the road crossing.  In 2002, GFT started habitat improvement works on this burn under the Cree (EU Life) Project, when fencing was installed between the castle and road to minimise livestock impacts on the burn.    

  As a continuation on these efforts; the GBH project has focussed on completing the habitat improvements across the entire lower accessible section of the burn with the aim of providing a continuous stretch of suitable habitat which fish will be encouraged to return to (spawning salmon) and further exploit (resident fish populations).  Recent fencing of over 1300m now completes stock exclusion from the burn in the farmed section between the fish pass and main stem of the River Cree.  In time, recovery of vegetation on the banksides will improve the burns potential for supporting more fish life and deciduous tree planting completed this February within the fenced area, will enhance bank stability and eventually provide better over shading on the burn to give some much-needed fish cover.

   

  Not all works have been planned well in advance and the collapse of a large tree into the burn last summer had to be promptly removed because of its potential for blocking migratory fish access upstream, which would have been of particular concern for fish ascending the burn to spawn (normally between October and December).  Similar operations are currently being carried out on the Shirmers, Palnure and Pulniskie Burns. 

  Upstream of the pond, in the area where rock placement has previously been undertaken; excessive over shading by mature conifers had been limiting productivity instream and on the banksides.  High brashing of 78 trees has remedied this issue and recovery in the underlying vegetation should now be able to take place with addition of sunlight.  Similar conifer brashing clearance has taken place on the Pulniskie Burn and selective chainsawing is to take place on the Gabsnout Burn of the Luce, later this year.

   

  Habitat improvements similar to those carried out on the Castle Burn have also been done on the Piltanton; where over 450 deciduous trees have been planted between the barren tidal section and 2km upstream.  Because of the nature of the Piltanton (being low lying and heavily modified by dredging over the years) close agricultural practices cause the greatest fish habitat threat through silt input due to heavy stock trampling.  One particularly important fencing job has been completed over 1100m of the upper burn and should help to minimise further bank erosion and eventually encourage fish to colonise here again.

   

  On the River Dee, gravel addition is to take place on the Mill Burn and 400m of fencing now protects part of the Shirmers Burn; one of the most important spawning tributaries of the River Dee.

  On the River Urr, the River Restoration Centre have visited and advised on gravel movements that were a concern on the lower river; rock placement has taken place on the Dam Burn and it is hoped that an extensive program of Giant Hogweed control will soon begin near to the river. 

   

  Mainly on the Upper Water of Fleet, but also on sections of the Penkiln Burn (lower tributary of the Cree) over 800 deciduous trees have been planted to aid bank stability and eventually provide cover over the burn, or to act as a buffering between conifer plantations which may cause acidic runoff (to which fish are particularly sensitive to) usually experienced at the headwaters of river systems.  Also in the Fleet catchment; a number of blockages have been uncovered in various burns within felled sections of the upper catchment.  These have been cleared and in some cases, the burns have been restored to their previous alignment to protect sensitive and often unique populations of resident trout.  Elsewhere, baseline electrofishing data (as a means of assessing fish presence/absence and density/health) has been collected on most of the burns to be improved through the GBH project.  Once improvement works have been completed, a programme of post-work monitoring electrofishing will begin (summer 2010). 

   

  We have now completed two years running of the Salmon in the Classroom project (see http://www.snh.org.uk/salmonintheclassroom/) with two regional schools taking part each year.  This project begins in February, when a GFT biologist introduces 100 salmon eggs into a tank (mini hatchery system) in the classroom where the pupils are left to rear and hatch their eggs into alevins before their return to the natal river (from which their 100 salmon eggs came from) to release them as fry.  Schools are currently completing their final session which sees the class return to the salmon release site to witness GFT undertake electrofishing to uncover their fry (now four months older) and any other fish species and salmon age classes. 

   

  Finally, to publicise our progress, GFT have introduced an HLF section to their bi-annual newsletters, which they have been distributing at the local summer shows and game fairs.  Our most regular GBH update can now be found on our brand new website in the news section (see http://www.gallowayfisheriestrust.org/ ).