We in Ireland are very proud of the quality and quantity of our angling. In order to maintain high standards, conservation has been a feature of Irish sport fishing for close on two decades. On coarse fisheries, it is rare to see fish being killed. Invariably, they are returned alive to the water or placed in a keep net and released unharmed at the end of the session. All coarse competitions and festivals are run on a strictly conservation basis - the fish are kept alive in keep nets and weighed at the end of the competition before being returned to the water.

Sea and freshwater competitions and festivals have now established themselves as great focal points in the Irish angling calendar. Holiday makers are always welcome and are specially catered for . Whether the visitor is a pleasure angler, a specimen hunter or an angling ace, a thoroughly enjoyable time is assured. Competitions can range from a one day event to a week-long festival. May events offer competitors a chance to win good money ( often thousands of pounds ) and other valuable prizes. Great emphasis is placed on the social side by the organisers, with enjoyable fringe events, such as sing alongs in the local pubs and scenic tours to complement the angling. Information on competitions is available from the various angling Federations.

Tag and Return

The cartilaginous species of marine fish are extremely susceptible to over fishing, even by anglers. The great wanderers of the North Atlantic, such as the Blue and Porbeagle Shark and their cousins, the gamey tope, are covered by our conservation programmes. The Central Fisheries Board operate a tag and return system, through the professional charter boat skippers. The more sedentary species such as the skate, ray and monkfish are also tagged and released. Some fish have been recaptured up to three times and details from the migratory species have been returned from all over the North Atlantic, from New York, the Canaries, West Africa to the Mediterranean. The information collected is invaluable, so we would welcome your co-operation with the skippers in allowing the fish to be tagged.

Competitions

On the marine side, all competitions run under the aegis of the Irish Federation of Sea Anglers are conservation based. In all events, strict size limits apply, while many have a return alive policy. Others are "species" tournaments with the greatest "variety" of fish taking the top prize.