Freshwater Habitats

Salmon, trout, eels and other freshwater fish require clean well-oxygenated water, a food supply and places to hide from predators. Most of the rivers and lochs of Wester Ross provide good habitat for adult and particularly juvenile fish.

Levels of production of fish and other wildlife in Wester Ross are limited by a lack of nutrients, particularly phosphorus. Soils are degraded and thin (as here in Beinn Eighe N'N'R). Ecosystems based on the recycling of nutrients from vegetation to herbivores to large predators and back into the soil are dysfunctional. Many catchment areas (like this one) are unnaturally barren as a result of decades of deforestation, loss of top predators, overgrazing, moor-burn and a lack of awareness and understanding of the potential to restore and rebuild more productive, biodiverse and vibrant ecosystems. Can the Scottish Government through agencies SNH and SEPA help to develop and demonstrate soil and fertility restoration methods on reserves like Beinn Eighe and thereby play a leading role in an increasingly vital global challenge or will visitors still be looking across barren, manmade rockscapes (scenically attractive though they may be to some) in another 50 years time?

Related Downloads

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• Improving Habitats for Salmon and Trout Production in Wester Ross
  PDF version of presenation by Peter Cunningham (WRFT Biologist) at WRFT-FWAG workshop on 26th January 2009. Note that this is a large 25 MB file with many pictures and will take several minutes to downlaod even with a Broadband connection. .  Posted: 04/02/2009 (24.86MB)
• Land Use and Salmon Smolt Production in Wester Ross
  Presentation given by Peter Cunningham at the WRFT Ecosystem Fertility and Salmon Smolt Production Seminar on 30th November 2007. Describes growth of juvenile salmon in Wester Ross and how this relates to soil fertility and land management. Note large size of file!.  Posted: 05/09/2008 (22.41MB)
• Response to Beinn Eighe NNR Management Plan September 2009
  Response from Peter Cunningham to Beinn Eighe NNR Management Plan .  Posted: 02/10/2009 (174KB)
• Soils, Ecosystem Fertility & Salmon Smolt Production in Wester Ross
  This poster illustrates the soils, ecosystem fertility and salmon smolt production in Wester Ross.  Posted: 24/06/2008 (69KB)
• Wester Ross and Lochalsh Biosecurity Plan
  Wester Ross and Lochalsh Biosecurity Plan Consultation DRAFT February 2010.  Posted: 03/02/2010 (1.81MB)
• WRFT FMP 2009+ Summary
  WRFT Fisheries Management Plan 2009+ Summary and Contents page.  Posted: 25/02/2009 (4.06MB)