Otters and Salmon.

[nabbers]

Theres a lot of Otters in the River Wharfe now here in Yorkshire. There was talk of salmon returning too a few years back. I wonder if salmon will ever flourish whilst there is otter in numbers?

 

Apparently if it wasn't for the farmed fish stocking our rivers, otters couldn't survive! Any thoughts?

[sako751sg]

Otters are one of the last problems the salmon has just now.

Seals and dolphins decimate numbers waiting to run in the estuaries locally here.

[panoma1]

I don't know how much of a predator of Salmon the Otter is? I imagine they will happily take immature Salmon and smolts, but I think their main fishy diet is probably eels and trout?

On the other hand we had a much publicised seal take up residence (for about a year!) in our prime mid river Salmon beat a couple of years ago and it devastated both the game and coarse fish stocks, the EA were worse than useless, we couldn't destroy it because they are protected in law and there was so much debate, faffing about, conditions and red tape to wade through before a licence to remove it is granted/actioned........nothing was done........it apparantly eventually eat its fill, got bored and went back to sea of its own volition?

A rogue seal is a formidable predator and because they are protected they can eat the whole fish stocks of a river and there is little you can do about it!.............no one can see fish because they live in the water, so no one can see the damage to fish stocks a seal can do to them......consequently no one gives a fig for the plight of a rivers fish stocks....."out of sight out of mind".....add to this an ignorant public who don't want the damn seal removed because they have anthropomorphised it by gathering to gorp at it, throwing food at it and giving it the name " Keith"...........even though it was apparantly female!!.....and the spineless authorities drag their heel in sorting things out if it in any way goes against public opinion.........even if that opinion is uninformed!

 

Another example of sensible a pro active conservation measure, sacrificed for one of an idealistic protectionist "Disneyland"

 

So don't hold your breath if you want to preserve fish stocks and conserve your river eco system by controlling a burgeoning Otter population!...........you won't be allowed to.....because they are "protected"...

[mowdy]

On a farm that I shoot on a dead otter with its head caved in was found by a stream that runs in to the south tyne .

it had been killed by salmon poachers judging by the damage fishing net that was also lying there!!!!!.

word can not explain what should be done to the perpetrator of such deeds .

[JDog]

Otters would take only a small percentage of salmon which got through nets,dolphins,seals and poachers.