Fish get baffled for their own good

FISH are being well and truly baffled on the River Dearne – but it is helping them to move further upstream.

Special structures called baffles have been fitted to the weir at Bolton-on-Dearne which enable coarse fish and salmonids to navigate the man-made object.

The baffles create areas of quieter water which fish can use to travel upstream.

The structures were fitted last October by the Don Catchment Rivers Trust using funds from the Dearne Valley Landscape Partnership and Barnsley Council.

Karen Eynon, project manager for the Don Catchment Rivers Trust, said: “They are a low cost solution to fish passage in areas where it is not possible to install technical fish passes.

“We will be installing more at Old Moor under the disused railway bridge.”

The effect of the baffles on local fish populations is still to be assessed.

Ms Eynon said: “We won’t have any idea on impact without surveys being carried out to investigate. This is something that will take place in the future.

“Anglers are our best eyes and ears on the river.”