The categories by which sea trout data have been reported have varied through the time series (see “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics”{https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781805258438}). Finnock catches have been reported since 2004. Finnock, which may also be known as whitling or herling, are sea trout which have spent less than a year at sea and are making their first return to fresh water. They are not included in sea trout numbers.
Catches of farmed multi-sea winter (MSW) and one-sea winter (1SW) salmon have been reported since 1994.
Released multi-sea winter (MSW) and one-sea winter (1SW) salmon have been reported since 1994.
Salmon rod effort, and the percentage of salmon catch covered by effort, from the 2023 to 2025 seasons are included.
No attempt has been made to correct for non-returns or incomplete information held in the register of fishery contacts.
Marine Scotland have published "2025 Official Statistics for salmon and sea trout catches" http://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781807750060 , summarising catches for 1952 to 2025. Summary data for the time series are available from our data visualisation application, accessible from the related content section below.
Reported rod catches of salmon, from the 2011 to 2025 seasons, and sea trout, from the 2017 to 2025 seasons, by Stock Assessment Area and month are available from "Marine Scotland Data" https://dx.doi.org/10.7489/12565-1
Form return rates, from the 1997 to 2025 season, for Scotland are available from "Marine Scotland Data" https://dx.doi.org/10.7489/12566-1
]]>Statistical district
Description: statistical salmon fishery district identifier
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: 107
Note: Single salmon fishery district as designated in The Salmon Fisheries (Scotland) Act 1868 and The Scotland Act 1998 (River Tweed) Order 2006. Statistical salmon fishery districts are described in “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics” {http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781805258438}. No rod catch has been reported from the Gour and Orkney Districts.
Statistical district ID
Description: numerical statistical salmon fishery district identifier
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: 107
Note: orders statistical salmon fishery disticts alphabetically. No rod catch has been reported from the statistical districts with ID 48 (Gour) and 109 (Orkney).
Report order
Description: spatial ordering of statistical salmon fishery districts
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: 107
Note: orders statistical salmon fishery districts spatially, counter-clockwise from Tweed. No rod catch has been reported from the districts with Report Order 66 (Gour) and 100 (Orkney).
District
Description: salmon fishery district identifier
Unit: none
Type: categorical
Levels: 53
Note: Salmon Fishery Districts as described in current legislation. The Conservation of Salmon (Annual Close Time and Catch and Release) (Scotland) Regulations 2014 contain links (via footnotes) to district designation orders which supersede The Salmon Fisheries (Scotland) Act 1868. No rod catch has been reported from the Orkney Islands District.
Region
Description: salmon fishery region
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: Clyde Coast, East, Moray Firth, North, North East, North West, Outer Hebrides, Shetland, Solway, West Coast
Note: See “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics” {http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781805258438}. No rod catch has been reported from the Orkney region.
Method
Description: fishing method
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: Rod: Retained, Rod: Released
Note: Released rod caught fish have been reported since 1994
Year
Description: year of season fish were reported caught
Unit:
Type: discrete
Range: 1952 to 2025
Note:
Month
Description: month fish were reported to have been caught
Unit:
Type: discrete
Range: January to November
Note:
Month number
Description: number of month that fish were reported caught
Unit:
Type: discrete
Range: 1 to 11
Note:
Wild MSW number
Description: number of wild multi sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: 0 to 4688
Note:
Wild MSW weight (kg)
Description: weight of wild multi sea- winter salmon reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: 0.0 to 22866.5
Note:
Wild 1SW number
Description: number of wild one sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: 0 to 2640
Note:
Wild 1SW weight (kg)
Description: weight of wild one sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: 0.0 to 5843.2
Note:
**Sea trout number **
Description: number of adult sea trout reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: 0 to 3005
Note: Categories used to report sea trout data have varied throughout the time series and are detailed in “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics” {http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781805258438}
Sea trout weight (kg)
Description: weight of adult sea trout reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: 0.0 to 3413.3
Note: Categories used to report sea trout data have varied throughout the time series and are detailed in “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics” {http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781805258438}
Finnock number
Description: number of finnock reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: blank, 0 to 989
Note: Finnock (may also be known as whitling or herling) have been reported since 2004 and are not included in the sea trout figures. Cells are blank from 1952 to 2003
Finnock weight (kg)
Description: weight of finnock reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: blank, 0.0 to 448.6
Note: Finnock (may also be known as whitling or herling) have been reported since 2004 and are not included in the sea trout figures. Cells are blank from 1952 to 2003
Farmed MSW number
Description: number of farmed-origin multi sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: blank, 0 to 162
Note: Farmed-origin fish have been reported since 1994. Cells are blank from 1952 to 1993
Farmed MSW weight (kg)
Description: weight of farmed-origin multi sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: blank, 0.0 to 607.5
Note: Farmed-origin fish have been reported since 1994. Cells are blank from 1952 to 1993
Farmed 1SW number
Description: number of farmed-origin one sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: blank, 0 to 272
Note: Farmed-origin fish have been reported since 1994. Cells are blank from 1952 to 1993
Farmed 1SW weight (kg)
Description: weight of farmed-origin one sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: blank, 0.0 to 641.4
Note: Farmed-origin fish have been reported since 1994. Cells are blank from 1952 to 1993
Salmon rod effort
Description: number of rod days reported as fished for salmon
Unit: rod days
Type: continuous
Range: blank, 0 to 4779
Note: To prevent duplication salmon rod effort is presented in Rod: Released rows only. Salmon rod effort is published from 2023. Cells are blank from 1952 to 2022, and for Rod: Retained rows from 2023 to 2025.
Percentage of salmon catch covered by effort
Description: The percentage of total salmon catch which was reported with rod days effort, by method
Unit: percent
Type: continuous
Range: blank, 0 to 100
Note: Salmon rod effort information is published from the 2023 season onwards. Cells are blank from 1952 to 2022 and where no salmon were caught from 2023 to 2025.
Statistical district
Description: statistical salmon fishery district identifier
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: 97
Note: Single salmon fishery district as designated in The Salmon Fisheries (Scotland) Act 1868 and The Scotland Act 1998 (River Tweed) Order 2006. Statistical salmon fishery districts are described in “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics” {http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781805258438}. No net catch or effort has been reported from statistical districts Aline, Balgay, Clayburn, Drummachloy, Gour, Grudie, Howmore, Irvine, Kinloch, Kishorn, Resort and Shetland.
Statistical district ID
Description: numerical statistical salmon fishery district identifier
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: 97
Note: orders statistical salmon fishery disticts alphabetically. No net catch or effort has been reported from the statistical districts with ID 2 (Aline), 12 (Balgay), 21 (Clayburn), 33 (Drummachloy), 48 (Gour), 50 (Grudie), 55 (Howmore), 60 (Irvine), 63 (Kinloch), 65 (Kishorn), 87 (Resort) and 108 (Shetland).
Report order
Description: spatial ordering of statistical salmon fishery districts
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: 97
Note: orders statistical salmon fishery districts spatially, counter-clockwise from Tweed. No net catch or effort has been reported from the statistical districts with Report Order 32 (Kinloch), 34 (Grudie), 50 (Balgay), 52 (Kishorn), 64 (Aline), 66 (Gour), 84 (Drummachloy), 87 (Irvine), 101 (Shetland), 105 (Resort), 107 (Clayburn) and 109 (Howmore).
District
Description: salmon fishery district identifier
Unit: none
Type: categorical
Levels: 51
Note: Salmon Fishery Districts as described in current legislation. The Conservation of Salmon (Annual Close Time and Catch and Release) (Scotland) Regulations 2014 contain links (via footnotes) to district designation orders which supersede The Salmon Fisheries (Scotland) Act 1868. No net catch, or effort, has been reported from the Irvine and Garnock, Kishorn, and Shetland Islands Districts.
Region
Description: salmon fishery region
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: Clyde Coast, East, Moray Firth, North, North East, North West, Orkney, Outer Hebrides, Solway, West Coast
Note: See “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics” {http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781805258438}. No net catch, or effort, has been reported from the Shetland region.
Method
Description: fishing method
Unit:
Type: categorical
Levels: Fixed Engine: Retained, Fixed Engine: Released, Net and Coble: Retained, Net and Coble: Released
Note: In 2021, released net caught fish were required to be reported for the first time
Year
Description: year of season fish were reported caught
Unit:
Type: discrete
Range: 1952 to 2025
Note:
Month
Description: month fish were reported caught
Unit:
Type: discrete
Range: February to November
Note:
Month number
Description: number of month that fish were reported caught
Unit:
Type: discrete
Range: 2 to 11
Note:
Wild MSW number
Description: number of wild multi sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: 0 to 18942
Note:
Wild MSW weight (kg)
Description: weight of wild multi sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: 0.0 to 102188.0
Note:
Wild 1SW number
Description: number of wild one sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: 0 to 34633
Note:
Wild 1SW weight (kg)
Description: weight of wild one sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: 0.0 to 103010.8
Note:
**Sea trout number **
Description: number of sea trout reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: 0 to 26126
Note: Categories used to report sea trout data have varied throughout the time series and are detailed in “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics” {http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781805258438}
Sea trout weight (kg)
Description: weight of sea trout reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: 0.0 to 46142.6
Note: Categories used to report sea trout data have varied throughout the time series and are detailed in “Collecting the Marine Scotland Salmon and Sea Trout Fishery Statistics” {http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781805258438}
Finnock number
Description: number of finnock reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: Blank, 0 to 5
Note: Finnock (may also be known as whitling or herling) have been reported since 2004 and are not included in the sea trout figures. Cells are blank from 1952 to 2003.
Finnock weight (kg)
Description: weight of finnock reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: Blank, 0.0 to 5.7
Note: Finnock (may also be known as whitling or herling) have been reported since 2004 and are not included in the sea trout figures. Cells are blank from 1952 to 2003.
Farmed MSW number
Description: number of farmed-origin multi sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: Blank, 0 to 129
Note: Farmed-origin fish have been reported since 1994. Cells are blank from 1952 to 1993.
Farmed MSW weight (kg)
Description: weight of farmed-origin multi sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: Blank, 0.0 to 621.8
Note: Farmed-origin fish have been reported since 1994. Cells are blank from 1952 to 1993.
Farmed 1SW number
Description: number of farmed-origin one sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: Blank, 0 to 209
Note:Farmed-origin fish have been reported since 1994. Cells are blank from 1952 to 1993.
Farmed 1SW weight (kg)
Description: weight of farmed-origin one sea-winter salmon reported caught
Unit: kg
Type: continuous
Range: Blank, 0.0 to 639.6
Note: Farmed-origin fish have been reported since 1994. Cells are blank from 1952 to 1993.
Netting effort
Description: summarised as median number of crews/traps
Unit:
Type: continuous
Range: 0.0 to 2215.0
Note: To prevent duplication Netting effort is only recorded in Fixed Engine: Retained and Net and Coble: Retained. Fixed engine effort is summarised as median number of traps operated. Net and coble effort is summarised as median number of crews operated.