FACT – there is no such thing as a low maintenance fish counter!  As well as making sure the software and hardware are working on the Tweed Foundation's two fish counters, every recorded video clip of a “fish” has to be visually checked.  For the Ettrick fish counter in October, this was 4,911 records!

Another fact about fish counters – once installed, they always require alterations to get them working properly.   The VAKI infrared counters that we use are quite remarkable in that on delivery, they can be up and running in under an hour - pretty much like a home computer these days.  It’s the installation bit that is always the problem.  For the new Gala fish counter, which was installed in the Skinworks Cauld in September, this has involved minimising turbulence through the counter's scanner at low flows and trying to stop large amounts of debris getting stuck in the counter in flood conditions.  711 fish have so far been counted through the new Gala fish counter, but we will have to wait until the end of next year to find out how many fish ascend the Gala Water to spawn in one season.  JH