CORACLE fishermen on the River Teifi have reacted immediately to concerns about the falling levels of fish stocks by agreeing to return any salmon they catch.

The Teifi Coracle Netsmen has also called on other anglers to adopt a catch and release policy after shock new figures from Natural Resources Wales (NRW) showed a sharp decline in the number of fish caught.

There was just over 40 declared net catches of salmon on the river in 2015 compared to about 115 in 2014. Declared rod catches were down from 300 in 2014 to just over 200 in 2015.

An NRW spokesman said the situation was fast approaching crisis point.

"It is coming to a fairly critical position, especially in light of salmon stocks. We're getting very close to being a crisis situation."

Those concerns have prompted the response from coracle fishermen on the Teifi..

A statement released by the Teifi Coracle Netsmen’s Association said: “Bearing in mind the recent pollution incidents on the river Teifi and the information provided by Natural Resources Wales regarding the current salmon stock levels, the Teifi Coracle Netsmen’s Association would like to announce that all Teifi coracle licence holders have taken a joint decision to voluntarily release all salmon caught during the 2017 season.

“We recognise that we all have to do our bit to ensure the longevity of all methods of fishing on the river Teifi and urge that all other associations and individuals join us in doing their bit to ensure future generations have the opportunity to participate in fishing for years to come.”

Netsman Mark Dellar, from Cilgerran, is one of the 12 licence holders on the Teifi and said: “We need to do something about this situation. Natural Resources Wales have asked that people are proactive and we have made the decision to release the fish off our own back.

“It is vital we look after the river and the stocks and the big push is to keep alive the heritage side of coracle fishing. It’s all about the bigger picture.

“This has been going on for hundreds of years and we want to preserve that tradition.

"I've been fishing for 15 years with the coracles and there's been a steady decline in salmon stocks over that period of time with numerous things going on in the river - pollution, predation at sea,"

NRW plans to hold a consultation in May on widening catch and release practices across Wales, to help deal with declining stocks.