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Exactly. It's not necessary to apply human considerations to fish, they aren't going to look at a sell by date and if it doesn't seem right to them they are unlikely to eat it. I had a large batch of elips that lasted me years and were catching at the same rate throughout. The worst thing with...

4lb BS line is the lightest I ever go, and that would be for roach or bream. Chub usually 5-6lb, barbel I would never go less than 12lb. I had a "stop it at all costs" struggle with a barbel on the W Avon a few years ago, it had been hooked close to a fallen tree. I was using 8lb line and at...

None of us have any proof of our opinions Damian when speculating "what if?". That doesn't make Lawrence wrong because we don't have the cleanest of rivers to put it to the test. My opinion is somewhere in between. Clean rivers would probably help barbel recruitment/survival rates but I doubt it...

Depends which rivers they mean. The Cherwell is mostly a muddy ditch through an average summer now. Stretches such as Heyford and Somerton used to have strong flows over thick beds of streamer weeds. Now they are running at half the flow/volume & are murky and lifeless. So the EA must have...

Very good explanation Terry. Some people assume pointing out the damage otters have done to the smaller rivers is automatically demanding a cull. It isn't. It's being honest and not afraid to speak the truth, however unpalatable "the public" or otter lovers find it. Some do refuse to admit there...

Sorry Mike, I just can't see any sane political party aligning themselves with an agenda to ban angling, no matter how well organised the anti group. We'll have to agree to disagree on that.

I don't see Angling being in trouble from that type of propaganda myself Mike, the general public isn't that stupid. I don't see the likes of Chris Packham taking that stance either as it would do a lot of harm to his credibility. Sadly, I don't see Packham highlighting the otters more predatory...

I grew up in Wales where buzzards were plentiful and believe me the swooping and mobbing in spring time was not uncommon. I used to fish a small stream for trout and you could hear the buzzards wing beats accelerating as it almost vertically dived straight towards anyone in the vicinity of it's...

I take a less pessimistic view Mike and your description of angling is exactly out of the antis text book, though I appreciate that is why you used it. I disagree that the non angling public will be up in arms, they are largely indifferent. Scare stories like you have mentioned have been around...

That was also an answer given to a former member on here (I think) when talking to somebody involved in the release of otters on the Upper Thames.

It's a fair point that all issues are in fact part of the same problem so logically can be included in the same discussion. The problem has often been the total denial by otter lovers that they are, in fact, at least a part of the problem, never mind whether they may or may not be most of it. I...

Where do you get your 6% is immune from Richard? Are you talking about natural immunity or vaccinated induced immunity?

The image of angling? In whose eyes? I don't particularly care what non anglers think of angling. As a person who also shoots I am used to negativity towards that as well and remain indifferent to it. The average non-angler/shooter doesn't actually give as much thought to these activities as...

I'd rather be stuck behind the hunt, at least they are just totally inconsiderate. I get the feeling cyclists set out with the sole purpose to piss off as many motorists as possible.

Water abstraction and quality is obviously a massive problem and certainly so in the Thames region. For quite a few years now the Cherwell has run a muddy brown colour throughout the summer, due it would seem to a number of factors. It was noticeable how clean it was last spring when the...

Damian, those anglers who have seen no discernible decrease in their catches are likely to be on big rivers like the Trent and Wye which have held up a lot better. Or they are anglers who seldom caught any great amount of barbel anyway, so again might not notice a problem. Try asking anglers on...

It would be surprising if all who voted for Brexit had the rivers anywhere on their agenda, let alone at the top. Equally true for remainers as most people saw bigger issues at stake than angling.

You caught otters on the fly? That's ace angling Richard :D:D

Quite so Chris. Back in 1981 I think it was, the Water Board found a very large barbel dead, that they think was hit by a dredger, on the Cherwell at Kirtlington. A photo was taken and a friend, who worked for the water board at the time, saw the photo and said it was a huge fish. The picture...

Not heard this story Mark, but his recording studio was in Shipton on Cherwell. I think his actual house was in Kidlington but not sure. Somerton now has a couple of resident otters I believe.