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Inside Out tonight 7:30

Andy Frances

Andy Frances

Administrator
Staff member
Hi,

Inside Out has a feature about otters and the UK's fish stocks. On at 7:30 on BBC1 though I'm not sure if that's just the West Country.

Cheers,

Andy F
 
Thanks Stephen.

I watched it last night and think Martin Bowler did a good job.

I found the presenter to be fairly patronising and biased against the angler. Especially when he refers to '...anglers being worried that otters are taking their fish'.

Andy
 
In the Yorkshire region , the programme featured a piece on otters in a nature reserve adjoining the river Hull . There was no angling element to it just a general film about the welcome return of Otters to the region and how shy and elusive they are. Not my experience I have to say ...
 
Andy Frances said:
Thanks Stephen.

I watched it last night and think Martin Bowler did a good job.

I found the presenter to be fairly patronising and biased against the angler. Especially when he refers to '...anglers being worried that otters are taking their fish'.

Andy
Click to expand...

Missed it Andy, will try to catch it on iplayer. Was Martin Bowler letting the presenter get away with being patronising and anti angler? His uncle wouldn't have done, 'cos he is VERY anti otter :D

Cheers, Dave.
 
The enviroment agency guy there said they do not want to see an inbalance in fisheries which means large populations of specimen fish in the rivers.

He claimed this was un natural to have large numbers of large fish...:rolleyes:

I'd say the quality of a river is measured by how many big fish it has in it, because those fish have had to live for years in a healthy enviroment to become large.

Some rivers are being stripped of fish by Otters, and it is clear the Enviroment Agency, who we fund to maintain healthy natural enviroments and fish stocks, could not care less about the damage over-populations of Otters are doing to certain rivers and lakes.

The attitude of that Agency guy was very much anglers are talking rubbish about fish stocks declining due to Otters.
 
thanks for that steve, trouble is i thik this debate will role on for a lot longer yet.
that river looked great, i wonder when it was filmed though, or hasnt that area been afected by the recent floods, as our piece of the severn in shropshire has been a raging torrent for the last ten days or so.
 
Bottom line is, unless Anglers do something about it, such as collectively refuse to pay licence fees (which is never going to happen) or some other such radical action nothing will change! The reality is that the EA do not consist of Anglers, they are largely scientists who care more about the Floura and Fauna than our chosen subject and as such we will always struggle to get what we want!
I welcome any EA officer to defend that accusation!!
 
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The EA guy was typical of his ilk!!

One day this country will have a properly responsible NGO that actually takes care of, and properly manages our countryside.

The current lot are a complete and utter waste of space!

You only have to look at the power turbines that are being fitted to the Thames weirs to see that the EA are nothing but government lackeys.

They are simply not interested in ANYTHING that happens under the surface of the water, they play lip service to angling and anglers and offer an insignificant budget to any issues that we have.

Look at how they have dealt with Cormorants and Signals - No effort because they have absolutely NO interest.
Otters on the other hand are a cheap PR win, they can big them up to make out they give a damn and stuff anyone who has a contrary view.

I would not trust them with a paddling pool, let alone a highly complex river system!
 
Keith Speer said:
The EA guy was typical of his ilk!!

One day this country will have a properly responsible NGO that actually takes care of, and properly manages our countryside.

The current lot are a complete and utter waste of space!

You only have to look at the power turbines that are being fitted to the Thames weirs to see that the EA are nothing but government lackeys.

They are simply not interested in ANYTHING that happens under the surface of the water, they play lip service to angling and anglers and offer an insignificant budget to any issues that we have.

Look at how they have dealt with Cormorants and Signals - No effort because they have absolutely NO interest.
Otters on the other hand are a cheap PR win, they can big them up to make out they give a damn and stuff anyone who has a contrary view.

I would not trust them with a paddling pool, let alone a highly complex river system!
Click to expand...
well said, i'm no fan of the EA.
 
Below is the response received from Natural England,after hearing they had helped introduce Otters into the River Ouse. I did ask if they or partners would be compensating farmers fishing clubs private lake owners for loss of income due to the intoduction of otters, and fast decline in fish stocks, they didnt answer the question

Many thanks for your email to which I have been asked to respond.
In answer to your central query, Natural England have not re-introduced otters into England.
Until the 1960s, otters were widespread and common throughout England (including East Anglia). It is thought that the introduction of certain pesticides in the late 1950s led to a significant decline in their numbers and reduced their range to the point where they became confined to Wales and the north and southwest of England. This restriction in their range continued until these pesticides were eventually banned in the 1970s and 1980s. At that time, it was feared the otter may become extinct in England.

In response to this decline, the Otter Trust released 117 captive-bred otters between 1983 and 1999 (an average of only 7 a year) to try and help the species recover some of its former range. Throughout this time the surviving otter populations in western England and Wales also began a natural recovery and spread eastwards. Populations in the north of England also began to recover. It must be noted that the recovery of this species is mainly the result of improvement in habitat quality, rather than the limited re-introductions made by other organisations. This modest reintroduction programme (not funded or undertaken by Natural England) soon became less significant as the natural recovery of the otter population gained momentum.
I hope this answers your queries.
Regards

Cressida

Cressida Mansfield
Wildlife Management Adviser
Natural England
Wildlife Management Licensing Service
Eastbrook, Shaftesbury Road, Cambridge, CB2 8DR
Tel: 01245 237682 (Please note new number)

e-mail: cressida.mansfield@naturalengland.org.uk
website: Natural England - Wildlife Management and Licensing

Natural England is here to conserve and enhance the natural environment,
for its intrinsic value, the wellbeing and enjoyment of people and the
economic prosperity that it brings.
 
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