Otters eating too many fish, says Labour campaigner
Chief reporter
Calls for otters to be removed from the wild to allow rivers to replenish themselves with fish were yesterday branded as "nonsense" by a leading Westcountry expert.
Martin Salter, former Labour MP for Reading West and an angling campaigner, said the "apex predators" were in danger of decimating fish stocks in British rivers and damaging commercial fisheries.
He accused conservationists of acting irresponsibly by releasing otters without checking there was enough food to sustain them.
He said: "You can't blame the otter for raiding fisheries. They have been released into an environment where there is an imbalance between predator and prey.
"Their numbers have been artificially boosted by a release programme that took no notice of the available food source.
"I don't want to see otters being culled but perhaps the Wildlife Trust could re-home these otters or put them back in sanctuaries until such time when the rivers and waterways can sustain themselves."
Mr Salter, who is standing down as an MP at the General Election, has also called for greater numbers of cormorants – another predator for coarse fish – to be shot.
He added: "It is irresponsible and unfair to allow certain species to wreak havoc on fish stocks due to an unsustainable lack of natural food sources."
The Westcountry was been at the forefront of the recovery of the once-threatened otter population.
From small pockets of populations in North Devon and Cornwall, the species has gradually recovered since damaging agricultural pesticides were progressively banned through the 1970s and 80s.
Benefiting from improvements in river quality, the animals began to expand their range eastwards in the late 1990s. Although still rare, they can now be seen in major urban areas such as Exeter, Barnstaple and Truro. The recovery is regarded as one of Britain's conservation success stories.
Vic Simpson, a Truro-based veterinary pathologist and a recognised authority on otters, said suggestions that otters should be moved was "nonsense".
"First of all you have got to catch them," Mr Simpson said. "If you use snares, the injuries that otters would suffer are absolutely horrendous. If you use cages, then otters will break their teeth trying to escape.
"First of all it is not practical, then there is the question of being granted a licence to trap them and that isn't going to happen."
Mr Simpson said the debate was often influenced by commercial fishing businesses who had lost valuable stocks to otters. He said: "Fisheries will go and spend tens of thousands of pounds on stocking their lakes and yet are too mean to install electric fences, which are effective in stopping otters."
Paul Wilkinson, of the Wildlife Trusts, said there were "plenty of food sources available in the natural environment for otters". He said: "Most anglers welcome their return to our rivers and streams as they are one of the best indicators of a healthy river ecosystem."
5 Comments
by dave, Bristol
Tuesday, May 04 2010, 9:26AM
“Is that funny - My river has otter and thousands of fish, rudd and perch, but our otters eat main sticklebacks. Idiot man!”
by Paul Yoxon, Scotland
Tuesday, May 04 2010, 9:15AM
“Your article in today¿s Telegraph (30/4/10) states that otters are decimating fish stocks, and Martin Salter MP, Labour's angling spokesman, has called for otters to be temporarily removed from the wild to allow our rivers to replenish themselves with fish.
He states that conservationists have been acting irresponsibly by ¿releasing otters having taken no time to check there was a sufficient food source for them. You can't blame the otter for raiding fisheries. They have been released into an environment where there is an imbalance between predator and prey. Their numbers have been artificially boosted by a release programme that took no notice of the available food source.¿
Let me give some facts which are taken from the Joint Nature Conservancy Council data. Otters are rare in this country and the latest government population figures give about 7,000 otters in the UK. Maybe this has gone up to 9,000 but probably little more. Compare this with 240,000 foxes, 250,000 badgers and the much talked about endangered water vole of which there are 1,169,000!
I would also point out that the Otter Trust stopped releasing otters in the early 1990¿s so the only otters now being released are from rehabilitation centres that have cared for wild-born orphaned or injured otters. The number of these releases is also very low.
Clearly Mr Salter has not checked his facts and has no idea about ecology in general let alone otters. Otters are at the top of the food chain and as they use both the land and water they are a great environmental indicator for both habitats. This is obviously important for all species including fish.
But we are not naïve enough to say that otters are not taking fish and this will effect fisheries. The answer does not lie in removing the otters to sanctuaries as to begin with there are very few who could take them. What does Mr Salter suggest we do with all these otters and how long does he mean when he says ¿temporary¿? And what happens when they go back ¿ the whole thing would start again. We should be living in harmony with nature rather than trying to remove anything which becomes slightly ¿awkward¿ to mankind.
The International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF) has been in touch with the Angling Trust (AT) following press coverage about otter predation at certain fisheries and an apparent call for a cull.
Mr Michael Heylin, Chairman of AT, was quick to point out that they do not support a cull in any way. In fact we had quite a bit of correspondence between ourselves and he said that the AT ¿is campaigning vigorously on behalf of all anglers to ensure that our rivers are healthy enough to support populations of both otters and fish. We have also lobbied the Environment Agency to release funds to help fisheries to fence their waters, and otherwise deter otters, if practicable.
Most of our members have probably never seen an otter in the wild and much press comment is driven by relatively few individuals. I do know from recent correspondence with AT members that many of them would think sighting an otter the most exciting thing they could experience in the countryside while fishing.
AT is pushing the Environment Agency to be much more adventurous in its work around the Water Framework Directive in restoring rivers to good ecological standard and that will go a long way to alleviating the "problem" of otters.¿
This is a very positive attitude which we at IOSF welcome.
I assume that the government would have to pay for the facilities and for the food and care of the animals whilst at any sanctuary. Surely the money would be used more wisely in helping to devise means of keeping otters out of fisheries and working with those who know and understand the problem.
Dr Paul Yoxon
International Otter Survival Fund
www.otter.org”
by bob, newquay
Tuesday, May 04 2010, 5:59AM
“words fail me, our life styles are in the hands of fools like this”
by Roger, Devon
Monday, May 03 2010, 1:22PM
“Labour supporters are using too much oxygen.”
by Paul Yoxon, Scotland
Monday, May 03 2010, 10:36AM
“Your article states that otters are decimating fish stocks, and Martin Salter MP, Labour's angling spokesman, has called for otters to be temporarily removed from the wild to allow our rivers to replenish themselves with fish.
He states that conservationists have been acting irresponsibly by ¿releasing otters having taken no time to check there was a sufficient food source for them. You can't blame the otter for raiding fisheries. They have been released into an environment where there is an imbalance between predator and prey. Their numbers have been artificially boosted by a release programme that took no notice of the available food source.¿
Let me give some facts which are taken from the Joint Nature Conservancy Council data. Otters are rare in this country and the latest government population figures give about 7,000 otters in the UK. Maybe this has gone up to 9,000 but probably little more. Compare this with 240,000 foxes, 250,000 badgers and the much talked about endangered water vole of which there are 1,169,000!
I would also point out that the Otter Trust stopped releasing otters in the early 1990¿s so the only otters now being released are from rehabilitation centres that have cared for wild-born orphaned or injured otters. The number of these releases is also very low.
Clearly Mr Salter has not checked his facts and has no idea about ecology in general let alone otters. Otters are at the top of the food chain and as they use both the land and water they are a great environmental indicator for both habitats. This is obviously important for all species including fish.
But we are not naïve enough to say that otters are not taking fish and this will effect fisheries. The answer does not lie in removing the otters to sanctuaries as to begin with there are very few who could take them. What does Mr Salter suggest we do with all these otters and how long does he mean when he says ¿temporary¿? And what happens when they go back ¿ the whole thing would start again. We should be living in harmony with nature rather than trying to remove anything which becomes slightly ¿awkward¿ to mankind.
The International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF) has been in touch with the Angling Trust (AT) following press coverage about otter predation at certain fisheries and an apparent call for a cull.
Mr Michael Heylin, Chairman of AT, was quick to point out that they do not support a cull in any way. In fact we had quite a bit of correspondence between ourselves and he said that the AT ¿is campaigning vigorously on behalf of all anglers to ensure that our rivers are healthy enough to support populations of both otters and fish. We have also lobbied the Environment Agency to release funds to help fisheries to fence their waters, and otherwise deter otters, if practicable.
Most of our members have probably never seen an otter in the wild and much press comment is driven by relatively few individuals. I do know from recent correspondence with AT members that many of them would think sighting an otter the most exciting thing they could experience in the countryside while fishing.
AT is pushing the Environment Agency to be much more adventurous in its work around the Water Framework Directive in restoring rivers to good ecological standard and that will go a long way to alleviating the "problem" of otters.¿
This is a very positive attitude which we at IOSF welcome.
I assume that the government would have to pay for the facilities and for the food and care of the animals whilst at any sanctuary. Surely the money would be used more wisely in helping to devise means of keeping otters out of fisheries and working with those who know and understand the problem.
Paul
Dr Paul Yoxon CBiol MBS
Head of Operations
International Otter Survival Fund
Broadford
Isle of Skye. IV499DE
Scotland.
Tel.01471822487
Website. www”