Fat bloke Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 Evening gents. Just thought I'd throw my two pennies worth in. Been a keen fisherman for more years than I care to remember, sea & rivers ( stocked ponds don't do it for me ) Otters have been reintroduced to waterways where they should be & have been having a field day eating fish that have been stocked to make a profit. The numbers of introduced otters have been quoted and misquoted many,many times but at the end of the day Mother Nature will sort everything out, until that day arrives just enjoy what you see, be it an otter or a prime fish. And put me down for a bowl of that curry fella. Regards. Fatty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 Not when that mirror is worth a couple of hundred pounds, and said otter will only eat a small part of it. They are causing lots of problems country wide for fisheries with expensive stock. A section of the Great Ouse at Adams Mill that held the biggest barbel in the UK and was the countrys premier big barbel fishery has been wiped out by them. I very much doubt the river network within the "Wirral" could ever sustain Otters nowadays .. its about 125/150 years since otters were viable within the wirral waterways ...One of my favourite dogs "Otterhounds" ... though lve no wish to see otter hunting return ... Mink Hunting should increase though ..Regards otters taking Carp ... suppose ijtroduced species being taken by native species is bound to happen ... ld be happy to watch an otter munching a 15lb mirror or ghost carp ... more so a zander or rainbow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 The crash in eel numbers is due to an internal parasitic worm introduced via the pacific eel (immune), not over fishing. Agreed, otters are native so if they eat introduced species of carp(vermin) and manage to raid pheasants nests(more introduced vermin) they'll get my support.They used to eat mainly eels but humans have overfished eels and the elvers and polluted the otters habitat so it's our fault if they turn to other species to survive.Anyway, I'm having curry for tea, Tarka masala, it's like Tikka masala but 'otter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shootnfish Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 Those barbel and carp need to start swimming a bit faster then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjlfishing Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 I'm afraid mother nature will not sort out the otter problem as the only predator the otters have is them selfs by eating there way through the already depleted fish stocks and starving them selfs although a fantastic animal to watch they need controlling . Believe me they are no where as rare as people think I could take you to see one in the morning .they are on every bit of water in Cumbria even town ponds in gardens everywhere in search for food , probably due to the decrease in eel numbers but the fact is like all natural England reintroductions they always seem to be apex predators which gave a funny way off always being a success story , success off of the back of mostly already struggling prey . Otters devastate the areas they live be it commercial carp lakes or river systems like the Ouse and no one can deny it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenboy Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 (edited) The crash in eel numbers is due to an internal parasitic worm introduced via the pacific eel (immune), not over fishing. Yes to a high degree that is correct , I believe the parasite effects the eels swim bladder , though the fishing for elvers has not helped matters. The Eel may have well have been its favorite food fish back in the day , but that was before the now popular carp fisheries were in abundance , just like us they are always going to take the easy option when it comes to food , so i am guessing even if eels were in good supply they would still be found decimating carp lakes. Edited January 9, 2014 by fenboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandgun Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 We have large numbers of otters here in the outer hebrides with holts evenly spaced around the coast and lochs i can watch them most days if I chose, we also have some of the best game fishing in the uk all wild fish, the otters live on both sea and freshwater fish as they have always done, but if we had a stocked carp pond i know where they would all be heading Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strangford wildfowler Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 I was out fishing one day down may local river and one ran right past my foot!! It scared the living **** out of me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman Mike Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 Not a beautiful animal when it's eating all your prized carp! They are getting waaaaaaay too common for my liking, waters everywhere been devastated by them. You are absolutely right ...bloody carp everywhere these days...every muddy pool on every farm...really decimating the indigenous fish stocks. Otters on the other hand are no threat to the balance of the river...when food source is diminished its numbers decline..Mother nature always finds away. I think that the native otter could just be the answer to the devastating affect the North American Crayfish are having on our indigenous fish species in many rivers. Otters lived in harmony with the fish and the birds long before man started interfering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitebridges Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 (edited) Otters are truly beautiful critters but they do a lot of damage to fish stocks. The chub stocks on the Wensum have been decimated by the increase in otters. We used to regularly catch good chub 5, 6 ,7lbers at this time of year now all you get is five pairs on eyes swimming on the river looking at you. They have virtually eaten the lot. They are also stories of Koi carp ponds in Costessey (right on the Wensum) being cleaned out by otters. They are common as muck and are pretty much everywhere in Norfolk now, including all of The Broads. Ten years ago they were a rare sight, not any longer. Edited January 10, 2014 by Whitebridges Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shootnfish Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 (edited) its not hard to make a garden pond otter proof, if people know they are in the area and do nothing about it then its their hard luck. As for syndicate lakes yes its an expense getting the materials but the actual putting up of the fence shouldn't cost much as the members can do it on work parties as was done on the syndicates round here. If the members aren't prepared to do it then maybe you should get some new members. Im not anti carp by the way i am a keen carp fisherman.the otters only seem to be a problem round here when the rivers are in flood. Edited January 10, 2014 by shootnfish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjlfishing Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 So the chub gone out of the wensum barbel gone out of the Ouse are not all down to lovely furry river foxes there was a reason why people used to hunt the otter and it wasn't just sport Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shootnfish Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 So its only otters that eat chub and barbel ,what about cormorants? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoggysreels Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 Do you have to use steel on Carp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 Yes, preferably a size 6. Do you have to use steel on Carp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoggysreels Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 Support depth comes into it! ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenboy Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 So its only otters that eat chub and barbel ,what about cormorants? They may eat some small ones , but considering some of the Barbel that went for the great ouse weighed in excess of 18lb I think the culprit had fur rather than feather ! Cormorants are a issue because they are eating the future big fish . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 ? Support depth comes into it! ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoggysreels Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 (edited) Should have read "suppose" ... silly me ! There are some clever people on this site, lm wondering if a No 6 steel could be activated at depth via a pressure switch or a form of contact switch ... Edited January 10, 2014 by hoggysreels Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 I meant one of these. Should have read "suppose" ... silly me !There are some clever people on this site, lm wondering if a No 6 steel could be activated at depth via a pressure switch or a form of contact switch ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitebridges Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 So its only otters that eat chub and barbel ,what about cormorants? You can get a license to shoot cormorants but you won't get a license to shoot/control otters. There are a fair few river syndicates in Norfolk who have licenses to control the ruddy cormorants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitebridges Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 its not hard to make a garden pond otter proof, if people know they are in the area and do nothing about it then its their hard luck. As for syndicate lakes yes its an expense getting the materials but the actual putting up of the fence shouldn't cost much as the members can do it on work parties as was done on the syndicates round here. If the members aren't prepared to do it then maybe you should get some new members. Im not anti carp by the way i am a keen carp fisherman.the otters only seem to be a problem round here when the rivers are in flood. Lovely. Fantastic looking Koi pond that looks more like a stalag POW camp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandgun Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 (edited) You are absolutely right ...bloody carp everywhere these days...every muddy pool on every farm...really decimating the indigenous fish stocks. Otters on the other hand are no threat to the balance of the river...when food source is diminished its numbers decline..Mother nature always finds away. I think that the native otter could just be the answer to the devastating affect the North American Crayfish are having on our indigenous fish species in many rivers. Otters lived in harmony with the fish and the birds long before man started interfering. Good point Edited January 10, 2014 by islandgun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjlfishing Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 So if everything lives in harmony we best all scrap our now worthless guns and let nature take its course Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandgun Posted January 10, 2014 Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 The bit I was pointing out was the bit highlighted about crayfish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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