Many organisations, including the RSPB, are gearing up for the General Election and setting out their store.
The Angling Trust - a new representative body for anglers - has launched its thoughts recently.
There is a lot to be welcomed in here, but also a few rather worrying positions.
We can welcome warmly the emphasis on habitat restoration of rivers and other water bodies. The RSPB works closely with anglers, and would like to do so even more, on this subject. We have been trying, together, to get the Environment Agency and Defra to be more ambitious in implementing the Water Framework Directive which, if used well, could do so much for our waterways and the wildlife they support. The emphasis on non-native species such as the American signal crayfish is also very welcome. And we work together on issues such as the damage that a badly-designed Severn barrage could do to migratory fish populations such as salmon, eels, Twaite shad and lampreys.
The worrying things are to do with the Angling Trust's approach to predators that eat fish! They are still going on about cormorants even though the licensing system was changed a few years back to allow more cormorant culling to take place. The Angling Trust also seems worried about otters - which like birds of prey are recovering from the twin effects of persecution and pesticide poisoning. It seems that anything that eats fish is in line for the ire of some anglers. That's a shame, when there are so many much more important issues on which we can cooperate.
I know plenty of RSPB staff who are keen fishermen and there must be huge numbers of our members who fish. I would like us to work together on the big issues and try to avoid sniping over the cormorants, goosanders and otters.
It seems that there is a bit of a tussle going on in the Angling Trust between those who can see the big picture of cooperating to try to get fundamental ecological improvement of our aquatic habitats and those who would put those potential gains at risk by stirring up resentment against pesky piscivores such as otters and cormorants.
I was sea-trout fishing last year with 4 otters in the same pool and it was magic. I was just happy and the sea-trout will be there another evening. Sea-trout are magic and so are otters and they have lived together for millenia. The real problems are river pollution, dams and over-fishing at sea. I hope the Angling Trust tackles those and leave otters alone
Hi Mark there does seem to be a problem developing with inland fisheries and Cormorants as their numbers are increasing rapidly.Don't think there are enough Otters or ever likely to be that they could be a problem after all not many people have seen a Otter in England.
Alistair - you've almost persuaded me to take up fishing!
Sooty - ahh, but mammals are very sneaky! I've seen otters twice here in Northants in the last five years.
Alistair - you've almost persuaded me to take up fishing - sounds great! and yes, surely fishermen and wildlife conservationists are on the same side.
Sooty - ahh! But mammals are sneaky! I've seen otters twice in Northants in the last five years.
Well done Mark we managed to see two on the nature reserve on the Somerset levels and think they are regularly seen there.Sweep has some good photos of Otters on Mull must try and remember to ask daughter to put them on my gallery when she comes to see us as unfortunately our PC skills very basic.Tobermory Otter almost shook hands with sweep think it was so inquisitive.
It just seems to be one of those things at the moment, some people who fish enjoy seeing the wildlife as well piscivorous or not while others despise anything that is eating "their" fish! Unfortunately as is often the case it is those with issues that have the loudest voice, though I think they'd be taking a big risk trying to challenge the much-loved otters which would raise far more public opposition than cormrants. Fish are wild animals and I don't think we have more right to those fish than any other animal be it cormarnt, otter or whale. They aren't domestic animals we have control over, they are subject to pressures in the wild and predators are just one of the many problems wild fish face, and these are minor when compared to the devestation some certain companies have caused to waterways yet these companies seem to get away with it!
Yet again the predators get it in the neck for the effects of habitat loss - and as you so rightly say, the real common interest is in making our waters cleaner & better for both fish and wildlife. There's been some real progress - the clean up of Tarka country in Devon, virtually destoyed by slurry & farm runoffs, now hugely improved by farmers working with Defra support - we need much more of that. I hope anglers aren't stupid enough to push fishing vs Otters because I know hich way I'll vote, and I suspect most other people in this country.
Nightjar think you would find there were lots more reasons for the demise of Otters in Devon besides pollution from farmers,there were lots of other polluters who have also come cleaner and do not think it has been anything much to do with Defra as when I was farming admittedly in another neighbouring county we worked with the water boards and sorted out the problems before Defra even thought about it.My guess is the same thing happened in each county because wherever I went anywhere in the country I saw lots of different types of low rate slurry irrigators that were mostly solving the problem.It was a typical carrot or stick from the water boards and if you co-operated they were very good with the expertise help and I think we all co-operated almost without exception.About the vote I know which way I would vote but in the country it would be a close run thing as angling is the most popular sport or pastime I think but of course we mustn't get down that road or the danger is the fishery owners would find it quite easy to keep Otter numbers low,really another case of keeping good relations.
Sooty - Angling might be the most popular pasttime but I would be surprised if the majority of anglers would support culling of otters, I've met a few who are anti-predator but many others who appreciate the wildlife that they see when fishing and that includes the otters. Not to mention, before anyone starts cracking down on wildlife that needs to hunt to survive, they should start to crack down on poachers who fish without paying for a licence, take everything they catch and wreak a natural environment without giving anything back. It's a lot easier to tackle wildlife though than poachers who just get a slap across the wrist when they get caught...
Hi Kat agree with you but promise you it is no contest if some fish which cost £500 get damaged or killed by Otter.I think there is room for anglers and Otters but if anglers were asked if it was angling or Otters think angling would win the day.Interesting that the local fishery although a conscientious owner gets bags of litter left,bottles etc and worst of all fishing line with hooks on which birds get caught up in or even swallow the hooks,it often seems to me quite a lot of anglers say what nature lovers want to hear but of course lots are responsible.
Surely hooking and releasing the fish causes damage to them also though? Maybe even making them easier for the otter to catch due to the fish being left exhausted and stressed after being dragged out of the water and released back in only for the whole process to be repeated?
It shouldn't be otters vs. angling, though for the otter I do think catching fish in some of these fishing ponds is like taking candy from a baby. There have been measures used to prevent birds catching fish (those floating rafts that stop birds being able to see the fish) now perhaps it is time to start looking at wild fish to see how they avoid otters and changing the fishing pond as a result (and hope the captive-bred fish still hold that instinct). In a natural ecosystem otters and fish have co-existed for a long time, and no doubt there were once many more otters than there are today, the question should then be for those running these ponds why their fish are so vulnerable to otters if the losses are that high, not just blame and want to kill them. It could require a change in the habitat to create safe areas from otters like the rafts currently do from birds, or it could be a case of altering the breeding of the fish. Fish bred in captivity don't always keep their survival instincts and when people breed for certain traits (such as size) this can result in losing things that are important to the fish in the wild thus leaving them more vulnerable.