Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) is launching a new online survey to collect changes in sea anglers catches over a period of time. By partaking in the survey sea anglers in Dublin and nationwide will contribute towards understanding changes in angling species over time. Ireland has an iconic sea angling resource, from tope in the Irish Sea to bass on the surf beaches of the Dingle peninsula. These fisheries attract many local anglers along with visitors from around the world. The new survey aims to track and inform possible long-term changes in the coastal fish populations targeted by anglers.
Dr William Roche, Senior Research Officer at Inland Fisheries Ireland said: ‘We are looking for sea anglers of all ages and experience to take part in our new survey programme to help us to understand possible trends and changes in catch over the years. We know that anglers have expert localised knowledge from spending time outside observing nature and the fish they catch. Over a sea-angling career, this experience becomes a unique insight into the state of coastal fisheries and we want to reach out to those who have localised knowledge and care about the future of our fisheries resource to help us to understand how it has changed.’
The study relies on the knowledge, experience and observations of citizen scientist anglers. The survey has been carefully formulated to capture this knowledge and allow it to be expressed as indicators of the current state of our important fish populations.
If you would like to take part in the survey please follow the link here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Fishing_Then_and_Now. Results will be available in time on our website. Each unique respondent will be entered into a prize draw to win a €200 voucher for their local angling tackle shop and a further two €100 vouchers are also in the draw.
For more information about Inland Fisheries Ireland visit www.fisheriesireland.ie.
