Bird licence applications: count cormorant or goosander on a river
When you apply for a licence to control fish-eating birds to conserve Atlantic salmon or sea trout, you must give us a count of birds using a catchment-based approach.
Catchment-based approach
We encourage you to work with others on your catchment (such as angling clubs or river trusts) to adopt a catchment-based approach. Evidence suggests that this is the most effective way to protect vulnerable populations of salmon and sea trout at critical times of year.
You can achieve this by:
- carrying out bird counts that identify pinch points where predation is highest such as weirs, bridges or other areas where birds gather
- coordinating with others to submit a joint application that addresses these pinch points in a strategic way
- appointing a lead licensee who will be in charge of the submission and legally responsible for the licence
- appointing accredited agents, responsible for their own river sections identified within the licence
- coordinating efforts at critical times to ensure that birds are not simply moved on to the next feeding location on the river
- developing the extent of control over time
You must provide us with bird counts for all river sections where fish-eating bird control is to be carried out.
Where to count
To carry out counts, you must split the river into sections that are no more than five kilometres long. You must survey all these sections.
When to count
You must carry out counts between October and March.
Recording the count
You must record the following details for each section of the river:
- date of count
- count start time
- numbers of cormorant and their behaviour (flying, roosting or feeding)
- numbers of goosander and their behaviour (flying, roosting or feeding)
We will ask you to enter this information into your application form.