Lake Ohrid restocked with 100,000 trout, fish-stock estimate remains uncertain

Lake Ohrid was restocked with 100,000 young Ohrid trout (Salmo letnica) on the final phase of this year’s artificial breeding and release programme, officials said during a visit to the Hydrobiological Institute in Ohrid. Despite the intensive restocking, experts still lack a reliable estimate of the current fish stock and say further scientific surveys and funding are needed.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy Borche Serafimovski said that in August and September all fishing zones of Lake Ohrid received a total of 6.5 tonnes of hatchery-reared juveniles — 1.6 tonnes more than the originally planned 4.9 tonnes. The 100,000 individuals released today have an average weight of 4.2 grams.

Serafimovski added: "This year a special group of 100 thousand larger individuals from last year's spawn, with an average weight of 16 grams, was also introduced, which is particularly important to compensate for what was missed during the pause in artificial spawning that occurred from 2019 to 2023."

Monitoring gaps and inspections

The minister said a contract has been signed with the Hydrobiological Institute for the next cycle of artificial breeding and restocking, which foresees releasing 1,550 young trout. On the question of the overall state of the fish population — given environmentalists’ warnings about the endemic trout, concession fishing and repeated poaching — Serafimovski stressed that more analyses are required.

Dr. Orchidea Tasevska, director of the Hydrobiological Institute, reported that this year the facility collected 1.4 million eggs that were successfully hatched and reared, with juveniles fed for six months. She warned that precise figures on the fish stock cannot be given without scientific assessments, particularly after the long interruption in artificial spawning.

Ivica Angelovski, director of the State Agricultural Inspectorate, said that from the start of 2026 to date the lake has been subject to 231 inspection patrols, resulting in 21 paid orders for detected violations. Four fines were issued against legal entities (both the company and its manager); the rest were for private persons. He stressed that inspectors work with the regional fish-guard service and the lake border police, and that combating illegal fishing requires coordinated institutional action and legal amendments.

In parallel with trout restoration efforts, the ministry is preparing measures to protect the critically endangered European eel. The government has adopted a national eel management plan that includes release of juveniles and assisted transport of silver eels toward the sea. The plan foresees that 40 percent of the annual quota caught in the traditional Daljan trap on the Black Drin near Struga will be transported to the marine environment to let eels continue their migration toward the Sargasso Sea, avoiding hydroelectric turbines. Dr. Tasevska noted that the last eel restocking took place in 2019 and that implementation will require detailed procedures and alignment with national and EU legislation.

Photo: SDK.MK)