Salmon Watch Ireland during 2021 launched a program of video inspection of three locations within Kenmare Bay, County Kerry to ascertain if  sea trout were returning to rivers with abnormal high sea lice infestation rates. The three locations examined were the Kerry Blackwater, Sneem River and Waterville.

The initial period in April to May was affected by high water levels and a very cold spring which appeared to slow the smolt run. However by June we did encounter some evidence of high sea lice levels and returning fish with sea lice damage. As it was the initial year of our project we have learned a good deal on where and more importantly the period of tidal influence which gives the best chance of capturing returning fish.

This will help us in facilitating a more wide ranging project in future years.

Below you will find MOWI weekly sea lice results for the two salmon farms operating in Kenmare Bay as required under the Aquaculture Stewardship Council regulation. This data is self reported. The monthly results from Marine Institute inspections are not available for publication until year is completed.

However we are aware of these results and will be comparing self reported and MI data on an ongoing basis. Initial results indicate that self reported data indicates higher levels of sea lice.

We have also included a Marine Institute Study which examines the hydrology of Kenmare Bay which indicates how far particles travel from salmon farms within the bay. This certainly indicates that Waterville and the two other locations are significantly affected by sea lice emanating from these farms.

The Deenish Island site was stocked with circa 400,000 smolts in Feb / Mar 2021 (Post Smolts in 2021)

The Inishfarnard site was stocked with 760,000 smolts in Feb / Mar 2020 (Pre-Adults in 2021)

The Kerry Blackwater video demonstrates that higher lice levels on salmon farms in Kenmare Bay have a devastating affect on post smolt sea trout. This forces the survivors to return prematurely to freshwater. These are the survivors as up to 90% may die due to lice induced mortality.