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Another 'Bigger' Problem!

Like with the protected inland Cormorants and Otters, the problem gets worse when they multiply over time and are unchecked. With sea fish stocks being wiped out by the sea fishing industry as Pete says, it has now become a matter of survival for all creatures. In my opinion, the Seals are having to do the same and it aint just salmon and sea trout that they are now after as you can see by the pictures. If the preferred diet of migratory fish have been wiped out by man then they will take what is available, which happens to be remaining coarse fish and then wildfowl etc! Just watched BBC daytime news with Martin Salter, Hugh Miles Trevor Harrop highlighting fishing and the Cormorant issue saying they want to cull and shoot them + the RSPB response which was against it. Personally speaking, i think the public would be on the side of the cormorants here as it came across as just cormorants spoiling anglers pleasure and enjoyment with less fish to catch and not enough on the bigger picture regarding the current and future environmental impact on all riverine and riverbank lifeforms.



Here is the Harrop-Salter-Miles piece about cormorants on the BBC - BBC News - Thousands sign petition calling for cormorant cull

A "do-able" predator (cull-wise), the cormorant, but heaven help us in the media and at the waterside if the "Otters ate my pet carp / barbel" boys keep banging on - we'll be pilloried and vilified in the first and bricked at the latter.
 
Seals have always followed migratory fish when they return and yes, if more return, then more seals will no doubt follow. But why do you think only the EA are keen to improve returns of sea trout and salmon?

I don't Pete, just didn't think it necessary to mention every river trust and organisation that are doing their bit. I think most anglers would like to see the runs of salmon and seatrout return even if they had no intention to fish for them, i know i would. Just making the point, as you have, that more and more seals will be entering our rivers and so this type of occurance is something we will have to get used to, particularly on tidal stretches - but not restricted to them. There have been a number of seals recorded well up some river systems. I remember one getting up to Poppleton ( above York ) on the Yorks Ouse and they have been seen as far up as Ribchester on the Ribble.
 
They got a lot further up from Poppleton Andrew! There was one in residence at Linton on Ouse weir area for over a season a few years back . There was also one well documented account of a seal swimming through a match on the Nidd , if I recall at Kirk Hammerton . Every season I see seals on the Yorkshire Ouse [ upper , none tidal reaches] , as Darryl said they follow the considerable Salmon and Sea Trout runs . Yummy ...
 
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