Anglers in the north-east say they are 'terrified' that a mysterious virus could wipe out salmonid stocks across the country.

The undetermined disease, which causes bleeding and skin ulceration on salmon and sea trout, has still not been identified despite the best efforts of Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) and scientists internationally.

The affected salmon show signs of bleeding ulceration and haemorrhaging mainly along the area on the belly of the fish as well as the head and tail. Secondary fungal infection usually sets in and can result in death.

Local angling clubs in Louth and Meath say that hundreds of fish sporting a white skin fungus have been spotted in rivers throughout the country since last April.

Since June, anglers have been advised by the IFI to leave diseased salmon in rivers and disinfect tackle waders and equipment.

A dedicated email set up by the IFI since June has received 25 reports from 15 rivers nationwide.

Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment Deputy Sean Canney admitted the situation was 'a worry' when it was raised in the Dail by Louth's Fianna Fail TD Declan Breathnach earlier this week

"Large numbers of fish have been found in the Boyne, Castletown, Dee and Fane rivers that appear deformed or diseased and there are serious concerns from the anglers about the risk of the disease spreading to humans," said Deputy Breathnach

The Minister has not confirmed if it is the highly contagious ulcerative dermal necrosis.

Alan Molloy, vice-chair of The Boyne Catchment Angling Association which includes 2000 anglers from 23 clubs described the situation among members as 'worrying''

"Hundreds of people I've spoken to across many rivers nationwide have seen these salmonids with white fungus on them.

"The fungus is a secondary infection and scientists can't seem to identify the primary infection, despite their best efforts.

"We have given live samples to the IFI and have asked our members to report any incidents. Unfortunately because they are so familiar now, many are not bothering reporting incidents, thinking they've already been reported.

"We are heartened by Deputy Breathnach's efforts and the IFI's response that all the statutory bodies are taking this seriously and investigating.

"We have to bear in mind that salmon stocks have fallen in our rivers by 90% since the 1970s. Anglers are deeply frustrated and terrified that we’re staring straight at the extinction of the iconic salmon from Irish waters happening in front of our eyes."

The sentiment was echoed by Liam Woods of the Dundalk Salmon Anglers Association who said: "It's a cruel fate that in the international year of the salmon, we are seeing this disease for the first time."

He added: "Anglers also from the Dundalk Salmon Angers Association, Balintra Anglers, Inniskeen Village Anglers and Kells Anglers have all witnessed these diseased fish."

A international COMPASS project on the Castletown River is tagging and tracking sea trout and we are now seeing that some of these fish are being infected

In June, Inland Fisheries Ireland informed the angling community that 'a small number of salmon' were showing signs of bleeding and skin ulceration as they returned to Irish rivers and appealed to anglers to notify them of any incidents.

In a statement yesterday they say: "IFI collaborated with the fish health unit in the Marine Institute with samples from the River Erriff and River Lee supplied to them and further samples from the Boyne supplied to the Veterinary Group in Galway for testing.

"To date, no responsible disease has been identified. The majority of reports of diseased salmon occurred during June and July with small numbers of reported incidents since that time.

"Given the international dimension to the issue, scientists from IFI have been collaborating with colleagues in Norway and Scotland in an effort to establish the cause of the disease.

"At this time, no laboratory in Europe has definitively identified the cause of the symptoms. However, an emerging theory is that it may be due to a change in salmon diet and a related vitamin deficiency.

"IFI continues to work with international scientists to exchange knowledge about the disease and the results of disease testing between countries."

Deputy Sean Canney admitted in his reply to Deputy Breathnach: "From a personal point of view, the local anglers are the people who have the local knowledge and that is what will help us solve this problem, but it is a worry."