Monday 14th : Was on Smolt traps last week and the weekend. Around a dozen Trout a day coming into the Peebles trap but nothing at all in the trap on the Yarrow at Tinnis. Very different from the previous two years there. It might be the cold but is more likely that with the rain and wet this year the river is much bigger than it has been the last two years with only a small proportion of the water going into the fish farm. Last year, April was a heat wave and  the intake was taking a large proportion of the river. In the office today, working on the papers for the Tweed Fisheries Manual that is being put together for the Commissioners.  All 81 are to have copies so the main work for the vacation student this Easter is photocopying and printing and putting all the paper into the folders.

Tuesday 15th : Kenny on traps this week. Still nothing at Tinnis but the usual dozen at Peebles. Still working on the Manual. Finishing off the sections on fish diseases, parasites and predators.

Wednesday 16th:  Working on the Management Manual all day

Thursday 17th: The Management Manual again all day - and finished it, barring some small details, by the end of the day. Scales brought in from Boleside of a small, 4lb, fresh-looking, firm salmon that had had fully formed eggs in it. The scale reading confirmed that it was a fresh fish, not long in even though it had either partly spawned or, possibly, had still to do so. It must have been what is traditionally called a "Blue" Salmon, small fish that come into the river in January and February to spawn almost immediately (after the "Gray School" or "Graybacks", big December fish). Despite the fact that they run the river in Spring, they are actually "Autumn" fish in that they spawn in the same season as Autumn fish - I usually describe them as "Spring-spawning Autumn fish". They cannot be distinguished from Spring Salmon by scale reading and I have not had enough of them to examine to come up with distinguishing features other than their small size. Any fresh fish caught in Spring that is less than 5lbs in weight can be suspected of being a "Blue" Salmon. The only sure identification at present is to open them up. Unfortunately, this Boleside fish had been gutted and taken away so couldn't get any pictures. On the 29th of February 1992 I saw a fish over a fresh redd on the Leader here at Drygrange - if it hadn't been a leap year, it would have been the 1st of March. I've also had a very credible report of April spawning at Walkerburn in the 1980's and one report, from a retired baillie, that some of these Blue Salmon run right up to to the very top of Tweed to spawn. Generally, the later fish come in, the further down the river they spawn, but these Blue Salmon contradict that.

Friday 18th: Weekly staff meeting in the morning, then a half day off.