River Tone & tributaries of the River Axe - Taunton Fly Fishers

Coordinator John Woods  13 Nov 07

Sites      River Tone (3) , River Axe (2)
Team     10
Activity   Since August 2006
www.tauntonflyfishing.co.uk

Taunton Fly Fishing Club have water on four rivers in Somerset and have the dream of all four being perfect habitat for trout with crystal clear healthy water, good weed growth and a plentiful supply of nymphs and flies - a good indicator of the first two. As spate rivers they are not going to be crystal clear or have consistently good weed growth though we are working on improving bankside management following a Wild Trout Trust advisory report.
In June 2006 a Riverfly Monitoring workshop was held on the River Yarty, supported by Wessex Water, South West Water and the Natural History Museum / Natural England Partnership, with twelve club members participating.


We fall under two Environment Agency offices, and our team of ten monitor 3 sites on the Tone on a monthly basis, and two sites on the Axe bimonthly. Trigger levels will be set by the EA in the long term, but for now the data acts as basis for comparison for next years results.  Summer rain levels have meant monitoring has been missed on some months due to safety considerations of entering the river. We are in the process of setting up another site in an area where we have carried out bank clearance work and will use the site to monitor any change in population as a result of the increased light into the river.

A year on and we are still going well. Maintaining individuals commitment to the scheme, particularly the long term, will require continuing enthusiasm, feedback and support. A steady stream of new recruits will be required to keep it going for years. We have had one group meeting, the next, in Nov 07, will include a bankside session to discuss sampling issues followed by a pub lunch. New team members are welcomed to support the existing activities and increase the number of sites we can handle.

 

River Wylye - Wilton Fly Fishing Club

Coordinator      George Pratley    8 Sept 2008

Sites      River Wylye (5)
Team     9
Activity   Since May 2007

The Wilton Fly Fishing Club controls more than 6 miles of the main River Wylye and carriers, with a policy of only stocking with fry. A philosophy of the club is “to collaborate with all interested parties in order to restore and to maintain the lower River Wylye as a habitat capable of supporting the natural reproduction and growth of brown trout and grayling”, hence the involvement of the club in the Riverfly Partnership. The river is affected by abstraction and weed grazing by swans so monitoring the level of invertebrate life is an important way of measuring the health of the river.

We sample at five sites, one site each at the top and bottom of the fishery, one site where major improvements have recently taken place and two sites of potential pollution. Where river levels permit we sample each month. An initial group was trained at  Riverfly Partnership workshops held at Leckford and Langford.

Dr Cyril Bennett recommended the Predicted and Trigger levels appropriate to a Southern Chalk Stream and, in the main, the predicted level is attained.

Wiltshire Wildlife Trust

Coordinator - Martin de Retuerio

www.wiltshirewildlife.org

Activity falls within South West - Wessex and Thames - West areas. » Wessex Chalk Streams Project Autumn 07 - River Monitoring – PDF-File, 217.4 KB

River Nadder - Barford and Burcombe Fishing Club

Coordinator      tbc    

Sites      River Nadder
Team    
Activity  

Further information to follow.