Our pal from the other side of the Pond, Franklin Moquette (our European correspondent), sent in this video of Atlantic salmon absolutely bashing their brains in against a weir on the Varde Aa in West Denmark as they try to leap it.
The frame above is grainy because I screen captured it off the video, but the movie has much better resolution. Read on for the link…
But first, let’s have Moquette set the table for us:
“This is a short movie that shows what can go wrong if a fish ladder is built the wrong way (too little water, too little attraction),” he says. “This situation existed at a weir in the Varde Aa but now has been drastically changed thanks to these pictures that were shown on Danish TV some years ago. The Varde Aa still has a small run of its native strain of Atlantic salmon. As you can see, there is a high percentage of big Multi Sea Winter salmon (that spent 3 to 4 winters at sea) in the Varde Aa!”
To watch the movie, CLICK It’s kind of a funky format that may not work for everybody. On my screen, it didn’t automatically play, so I had to click in the upper right corner of the image and manually hold down the right arrow on the screen.
Good footage if you can make it work, though!
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
What can someone do if they have the same situation in their neck of the woods?
(Oregon) Just a few thing to get the ball rolling. I am a member of two major N.W. Associations and they got their hands full which is completely understandable. Something one person can start to do on their own?
Dear Ken,
Is it about a weir (dam) or a natural waterfall? In any case, you should not deal with such a situation all by yourself. Did you already contact local chapters of organizations like Trout Unlimited or the Federation of Fly Fishers?
Franklin, I would do the homework on my own with pic’s,vid’s and documentation only. Then I would look to see who could understand and further use the info to pursue this cause. Trout Unlimited or the Federation of Fly Fishers! Wow! Great place to start. Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll give it a shot.