salmo salaar
The Wild Atlantic salmon is one of nature’s most remarkable travellers. Over its lifetime, it can journey nearly 4,000 miles, navigating both freshwater and saltwater—a rare feat among fish.
Dipper
Cinclus cinclus
A record-breaking salmon?
In November 1888, a Mr Lowther Bridger, landed one of the largest salmon to have ever been caught on fly on an English river.
To this day, controversy still surrounds the capture, as Mr Bridger appears to have claimed the fish as an English record on more than one occasion and at differing weights!
According to The Times newspaper, the monumental fish weighed some 50lb and presented a length of 54 inches and girth of 27 inches!
The leviathan was preserved for posterity by a taxidermist. Today, the specimen at the centre of this dispute resides in the collection of the Natural History Museum in London, with a note of provenance from Mr Bridger.
In 2016, artist David Williams-Ellis worked with Eden Rivers Trust to create a bronze sculpture based on the proportions of the fish to raise awareness of their plight and raise money to fund habitat improvement work. (David, pictured with the preserved salmon in the store at the Natural History Museum)
