Stunning photo shows salmon making journey up Yorkshire river cascade
On their final journey upstream to their spawning grounds Atlantic salmon leap up the 2.5-metre limestone cascades of Stainforth Force, near Settle.
With the fish, that have an average lifespan of 13 years and weigh up to 40kg, only being found in the cleanest of rivers, it’s a spectacle that draws visitors to the western Yorkshire Dales each autumn.
However, The River Ribble Trust says salmon numbers in the watercourse have dropped to a fraction of what they once were, largely due to man-made obstacles and predators, such as otters and herons.
To improve the salmon’s odds of reaching adulthood and completing their 75-mile journey from the ocean, the charity is working to restore natural river flow and improve habitats.
Upstream from Stainforth and where the Ribble rises, near Ribblehead Viaduct, the females dig shallow depressions in the gravel river bed called redds using their tails to lay eggs, which a male fertilises before the female covers them.
Juvenile salmon remain in freshwater for up to six years before migrating back to the ocean.