King of fish floundering in UK rivers

Stocks of wild Atlantic salmon have been halved in 20 years as climate change and fish farming push the "king of fish" towards extinction, conservationists warn.

A global study has found that the wild salmon have already disappeared from 309 of their 2000 traditional breeding areas worldwide, including seven of the 76 salmon-bearing rivers in England and Wales. The conservation body WWF and the Atlantic Salmon Federation said the fish was now endangered in 50 per cent of Britain's 470 salmon rivers.

A WWF spokeswoman said: "When a river loses its salmon stock, that population is gone forever. The miracle of returning to its spawning ground cannot be repeated."

- INDEPENDENT