The Six Rivers Project hosted a second International Symposium on the Future of the Atlantic Salmon on Tuesday 21st and Wednesday 22nd September 2021.
The conference, held in Reykjavik, brought together leading experts from Iceland, Norway, Finland, the UK, Ireland and Canada to discuss the alarming decline in the North Atlantic Salmon population which has fallen to one-quarter of its 1970s level. The conference discussed the scientific community’s current understanding of the potential causes of this decline and conservation strategies that can help bring this species back from the edge of extinction.
Sessions
The Six Rivers Project
- Overview of the Six Rivers Conservation project in Iceland & approaches to extending habitat: Dr Peter Williams
- Ecology of the six rivers: Dr Hlynur Bardarson, Senior Scientist, MFRI, Iceland
- Food webs and preliminary results from Parr & Smolt tagging in the Vesturdalsa: Sammi Lai, Doctoral Researcher, MFRI, Iceland
- Modelling of salmon populations in the Six Rivers Project: Olivia Morris, Doctoral Researcher, Imperial College, London
- Salmonids as keystone species in the ecosystem: foods webs & new approaches to understanding Salmon Populations: Professor Guy Woodward, Imperial College, London
River Systems
- Population-specific monitoring, assessment and management of a large Atlantic salmon stock complex in the River Teno/Tana: Dr Jaakko Erkinaro, Research Professor, Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
- Habitat change: ladders & tree planting as natural experiments: Dr Nikolai Friberg, Research Director – Biodiversity, NIVA, Norwegian Institute for Water Research
- Growth and survival of salmon: a case study: Dr Rasmus Lauridsen, Head of Fisheries Research, Game & Wildlife Trust, UK
Panel Discussion
- Supporting the conversation of The Atlantic Salmon: Sir Jim Ratcliffe and others
Salmon at Sea
- Mating Systems Shaping The Dynamics Of Atlantic Salmon Populations: Dr. Ian A. Fleming, Professor, Department of Ocean Sciences, Ocean Sciences Centre, Memorial University of Newfoundland
- Fundy Salmon Recovery: How an Innovative Collaboration is Restoring Wild Atlantic Salmon to the Inner Bay of Fundy: Prof Kurt Samways, Parks Canada Research Chair, Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Brunswick, & Canadian Rivers Institute 100 Tucker Park Road Saint John, New Brunswick CANADA
- How genetic and other methods can help understand the biology of salmon at sea: Dr Philip McGinnity, Environmental Research Institute, UCC, Ireland
Salmon Conservation
- Supporting Atlantic salmon conservation efforts: promoting an ecosystem-based approach, and developing effective tools for managers: Dr Colin Bull, Principal Investigator, The Missing Salmon Alliance
- Estimating the benefits of salmon conservation activities: Dr Katrina Davis, Department Of Zoology, University Of Oxford
- Salmon as an ecological indicator: Mark Bilsby, CEO of the Atlantic Salmon Trust