By Sam Deakin, Bournemouth University

I participated in the final two weeks of Salmonid parr tagging on the river Frome in September. It was a privilege to work alongside and shadow experts in their field, gaining experience in tagging operations with the welfare of the fish at the heart of everything we did. The workflow was methodical, the team working aspect eased by the congenial atmosphere and sharing of ideas.

Roles during the tagging process are diverse, requiring some physical strength and a deal of focus on the task. Tasks included hauling buckets/the boat, netting, data entry on the laptop, collecting and writing up fish scales for the gene-bank. I didn’t have a favoured role, it was enjoyable to alternate between the physical and the mental, however netting of fish is both exciting and also pressured -you don’t want to be responsible for the one that got away!

I highly recommend the experience to students who wish to develop their practical skills whilst gaining experience and knowledge of river systems.