WARMER winters and cooler springs have been linked to lower numbers of juvenile salmon in Dorset's River Frome.
New research probing the influence of temperature and flood events on juvenile Atlantic salmon found that warmer winters and cooler springs could be driving a fall in their numbers.
Experts from the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) studied the River Frome and found numbers of juveniles were lower following unseasonal temperatures, which, they say, could be associated with climate change.
Dr Jessica Marsh, who led the research for GWCT, said: “Our findings highlight that changes to seasonal temperatures in chalk streams – groundwater-fed rivers that are considered relatively stable in their thermal regime compared to more dynamic rain-fed rivers – can have detrimental impacts on juvenile salmon recruitment in these systems."