Your Otter problem

[TheDacer]

I don't think anyone doubts that Otters are doing damage.

 

Whether you like it or not, however, Otters belong in our countryside.

 

Thus it is up to Commercial Fisheries to protect their stock from the Otter. And not to demand that the Otter be exterminated or whatever.

 

(Now where are all those people who are pro-CA?? Shouldn't they be on here defending the Otter? I thought the CA was all for proper and responsible countryside management? You've all gone very quiet all of a sudden....)

[trent.barbeler]

Dear All,

 

One thing to remember concerning the reintroduction of Otters is the "Tarka Syndrome".

 

No chaps, this is not a medical problem but a very real perception that the general public have concerning one of their favourite animals. EVERYONE, well, almost everyone, love Otters. "Ring of Brightwater" and Tarka the Otter have seen to that along with countless films made and shown on TV over the years depicting Otters as the lovable character along the rivers edge.

 

This public perception that the Otter undoubtedly has, makes the problem of addressing Otter predation on behalf of anglers that much more difficult. It is very much like walking a tight rope over an abyss. One wrong move or word said within negotiations and the whole process of tenuous and careful negotiation is lost.

 

Now there is no question that very expensive fish stocks have been lost to Otter predation. These expensive fish stocks are not in monetary terms alone. It takes an awful long time for a carp to grow to be over twenty pounds in weight which of course, makes them so very expensive to replace. Otter predation is also not merely limited to commercial fisheries. Ordinary angling clubs with already stretched finances are effected to. As are ordinary river angling clubs facing the same financial problems.

 

Apart from stillwater environments placed under threat from Otter predation which can at least be offered protection via expensive netting if funding can be found, what about our rivers that will, undoubtedly come under a similar threat sooner or later. How the hell would one go about protecting river stocks? Protective netting on rivers just isn't an option so what are river clubs going to do in order to protect fish stocks along their stretches?

 

Chris Burt and his team have worked extremely hard in order to address what is, undoubtedly, a very worrying problem. Chris has also knocked on many doors, and is knocking still, in order to get protective Otter netting properly finaced so that stillwaters under threat from Otter predation can receive some financial help in protecting their fisheries.

 

I am certain that in the fullness of time, our rivers fish stocks on some rivers will come under the same threat from Otter predation as certain stillwaters have. And when they do, we had all better to be ready to follow Chris's example on how to deal with the Otter groups and the mighty general public so that we as river anglers, manage to retain the publics general support whilst striving to protect river fish stocks as well.

 

No easy task, but one we will almost certainly have to face sooner or later.

 

Regards,

 

Lee.

[Izaak Walton]

Sir, my fortune has answered my desires, and my purpose is to bestow a day or two in helping to destroy some of those villanous vermin: for I hate them perfectly, because they love fish so well, or rather, because they destroy so much; indeed so much, that, in my judgment all men that keep Otter-dogs ought to have pensions from the King, to encourage them to destroy the very breed of those base Otters, they do so much mischief.

 

I am, Sir, a Brother of the Angle, and therefore an enemy to the Otter: for you are to note, that we Anglers all love one another, and therefore do I hate the Otter both for my own, and their sakes who are of my brotherhood.

 

Izaak

[Davemc1]

Izaak are you taking the "P"

[Davemc1]

Trent barbeler,

 

Do you think we should do away with our kids because they eat too much food. No, that,s because thats life.

Let other live to.

[Newt]

Well, let me see. Bears roamed the English countryside at one time. Is anyone working to bring them back?

 

They do eat some fish but not too much. Berries are a favorite. And kids at times. Since the fish are mostly salmon during their spawning run, that shouldn't be a problem. Berries - easy enough to grow plenty of those. Kids - the one critter that ain't in short supply at all.

 

And then you have the The Wolf Society of Great Britain. They are now involved in the "bring wolves back to Scotland" question. Maybe England is next?

 

And it would be nice if you folks could again see wild boar living on the land. The Russian one is awesome. The US Razorback ain't bad. And they would likely cross-breed with the wild and ferel pigs you have now. Just be a bit careful with them though. They have been known to run down humans and inflict great damage. In fact, a nasty temper is more the rule than the exception.

[Nightwing]

Like has been pointed out it would seem appropriate for the owners of domestic fish farms and fisheries to protect their stocks at their own expense, not that of the wildlife in the area. If you run a private fishery that is primarily a for-profit business, than protection of your stock seems a reasonable business expense, one that would simply be passed on to the patrons.

You all say these are not wild fisheries, but instead essentialy busineses, so in my mind, a fence around the property is appropriate, just as a lock on the door of a store is appropriate.

Should a fisheries owner take reasonable precautions, and still loose some fish to an otter, it could easily be trapped out, and the owner could be reimbursed for the cost of the fish. By reasonable precaustions, I think a fence at the minimum is in order.

The comments about the otters eventualy destroying the rivers is over the top, I think. Sounds much like the farmers who think the only good raptor is a dead one. Otters living in rivers will eat some fish, no doubt, but they will not destroy the fish populations. Unless, of course, the rivers are so overfished that the populations are already on edge. That would seem to bring up the serious question as to if angling should be allowed at all however, if the fisheries are in such dire straits.

[NigelT]

I think alot of people are missing the point here. I don't think anyone is advocating the decimation of otters, what is needed is HELP in protecting fish stocks. Dacer, you seem to think that this is a threat to commercial fisheries, it is not. In our case the water was run as a small syndicate of only nine members, we had to fund the protection work ourselves and give up many valuable days/weeks to try and find a solution. What was really annoying was that no one could offer practical help, 'experts' or 9 to 5 conservationists as we christened them were not interested in the wildlife beneath the water only that of Tarka. It is nice to promote the fact that the so called experts have encouraged otters so that the general public have the perception that everything is rosy in natures little garden.

 

It is so easy to say erect a fence, what design would you go for?. Remember we had no prototype or existing fence to work to. The first fence we bought was electrified, but it didn't last long despite being designed for agricultural use. We therefore had to start from scratch with our own design, imagine our feelings when large carp were continually being killed by an otter even when we in the process of erecting the fence.

 

Still no help was forthcomming from the experts. However every cloud has a silver linning our fence is now otter proof and with good management the water is back on the right track. We have lost the original fish and taken several years to get things right so hopefully people can learn from our experience. Indeed one other fishery in our area was able to copy and improve on our design to protect their own water.

[Leon Roskilly]

Newt:

And it would be nice if you folks could again see wild boar living on the land. The Russian one is awesome. The US Razorback ain't bad. And they would likely cross-breed with the wild and ferel pigs you have now. Just be a bit careful with them though. They have been known to run down humans and inflict great damage. In fact, a nasty temper is more the rule than the exception.

Newt,

 

A number of farmers have been keeping wild boar to be served up in trendy restuarants, with the inevitable result that leaky fencing has enabled escapees to become (re)established in the 'wilds' of Kent.

 

So far, they have kept well away from human habitation and I haven't heard any wild boar stories for months. (Though the Bluebell cat does still get seen from time to time!).

 

When I lived in Australia, there were plenty of wild boar (descendants of escaped domestic pigs) roaming the bush, eating the occasional child and spreading TB.

 

On outback hunting trips, we'd carry a hatchet in our belts. The theory being that if you were charged by a boar, you'd smartly side-step the charge and whack it with the axe as it passed by.

 

I'm ever so glad that the crashing sounds I'd hear in the brush as I approached, were always from animals quickly heading in the opposite direction!

 

I never did have much faith in the side-stepping theory, although the axe in the belt was a always comfort when you heard the brush rustle!

 

Tight Lines - leon

[Leon Roskilly]

Nightwing:

Like has been pointed out it would seem appropriate for the owners of domestic fish farms and fisheries to protect their stocks at their own expense, not that of the wildlife in the area.

 

If you run a private fishery that is primarily a for-profit business, than protection of your stock seems a reasonable business expense, one that would simply be passed on to the patrons.

Anyone setting up a fishery in an area populated by otters needs to bear in mind the cost of protecting stocks and ensure that the needs of the existing wildlife come first.

 

But that is not the situation many fisheries find themselves in (and many fisheries are run by clubs, not in it for the profit, but financed out of the members subs).

 

Fisheries have long been established in areas where otters have not been present for many decades, and given the changed environment and increasing urbanisation of those areas, would probably have never been repopulated naturally.

 

I have no problem at all with a buch of otter enthusiasts, gaining control of an area of land, fencing it off and releasing otters.

 

The problem is that the enthusiasts have released into the 'wild' without any consultation with those whose properties will be affected, with no consideration for individuals, organisations and businesses that will be affected, and with no proper environmental assessment to ensure that the new (long otterless) habitat is able to sustain the introduced otter population without significant impact.

 

If they had to personally bear the costs of their releases, I doubt they would have gone ahead.

 

But no, others have to bear the costs and aggravations of their actions - not their problem, tough luck!

 

That hardly seems fair, and if you were struggling to build your life's dream of owning a fishery, invested many thousands in buying stock (large carp may cost in the region of £300 per fish), and someone came along and released an otter into your water, would you accept it philosophically?

 

It's real people's lives and aspirations that are being threatened by uncontrolled releases into territories previously long barren of otters.

 

If society (or a proportion of society)wants otters re-introduced to an area, they should bear the costs, not just shrug it off when they make others become the innocent victims of their actions.

 

Fortunately, through the Specialist Anglers' Alliance, and through the huge personal efforts of Chris Burt these problems are now being recognised by the responsible authorities within the otter release movement, and slow progress is being made.

 

As to otter fencing. Have you any idea of the cost of fencing off (say) a forty acre lake?

 

It's going to take many years to recoup such an 'investment', and many clubs and fisheries (usually run by a bloke and his dog) are struggling to make ends meet now.

 

Coming from the populace South-east I have trouble getting my head around the whole concept of otter fencing.

 

For a start, the land around most lakes I know are criss-crossed by public rights of way, and there is a vehemenent lobby protesting at any attempted obstruction.

 

Getting the local parish council to approve work to put in a path for disabled anglers is a monumental task. I simply can't imagine them approving the fencing off of a lake!

 

And if a fence does go up, it will soon be down.

 

Torn down by trial bikers, or simple vandalism for the 'fun' of it!

 

Tight Lines - leon