Petition regarding fish eating birds raised by the NGO

[devon deer stalker]

Petition: Add fish-eating birds to Schedule 2.1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

Amend Schedule 2.1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to list cormorants, goosanders and red-breasted mergansers that they may be managed, enabling proportionate control to protect inland fisheries and migratory fish populations where serious damage is evidenced.

petition.parliament.uk

Please consider signing the above, these birds need to be controlled!
Its so frustrating, we do all we can to protect fish stocks, especially the Salmon, and they just eat the par/smolts!
We have them on my local river but the NT/WT won't entertain applying for a licence, ive asked to no avail

Thanks

 

[UnframedDave]

I don't agree with it at all, but adding Merganser and Goosander (fundamentally the same bird) to the list kills it's viability altogether.

 

[Kalahari]

Done. Salmon are endangered and the fish eating birds contribute to this.

David.

 

[UnframedDave]

Done. Salmon are endangered and the fish eating birds contribute to this.

David.

Best extend the list then, let's have kingfishers on there.

 

[Buchan]

How about just stopping salmon fishing for a while? Is it still the issue of them being caught in the estuary on return?

 

[devon deer stalker]

Its not quite so simple as that, there are huge restrictions already on Salmon fishing, I'm sure there are some waters where you can take a fish, but I don't know of any.
So many problems, high seas nets, estuary nets (although a lot of the latter have been bought out) pollution, lack of good spawning habitat, but global warming has an impact as well.
Scotland, fish farms and an increase in lice and disease.

My local club does a lot to improve habitat and restrict fishing for Salmon, but lets face it, these birds are good at what they do, if we can just do a small part to protect our fisheries, and I'm not just talk game angling, coarse fisheries suffer as well, it will help.

 

[JockStalk]

Had a great couple of hours on the loch, fish on the boil ……… until the osprey showed up

 

[UnframedDave]

I think you've highlighted part of the problem in the post above. Nature adapts, where commercial stocked lakes appear, so do predators.

I think you stand a slight chance with cormorants, they're a bit like pigeons in the birding world. I think you stand zero chance including the other species. You're chances are reduced again when you are talking about the NT.

Birders in the UK come in at about 4 million. They have some very strong and financially well off representation, killing mergansers is never likely to happen in my opinion.

 

[countrryboy]

How about just stopping salmon fishing for a while? Is it still the issue of them being caught in the estuary on return?

Or go to catch and release.
My local river was voluntary catch and release for almost 3 decades now.
And fish numbers did increase, so much so we beat our neighbouring far bigger river in catches.
But now its a legal thing, fisher numbers have dropped like a stone.
Beats that used to be dead man's waders now only have 1 or 2 season tickets sold.
The cheap beat I used to fish as a kid used to stand shoulder to shoulder on a sat at end of season, hardly see a fisher on it now.

The problem u have if u restrict the fishing who pays for all the conservation work?
The amount of salmon taken by the rod is tiny.
But ur seals, cormorants and 'anders' will still be eating their fill.

And if no one fishing who's going to monitor fish numbers in the river.

Rivers have never been cleaner.
I remember as a boy some of the dairy farms esp I worked on the burns nearby were just 1 or 2" of that slimy algae/growth crap for 00's of meters downstream.
And that was just the tail end off decent salmon and sea trout numbers sort of 40yrs ago.

 

[countrryboy]

I think you've highlighted part of the problem in the post above. Nature adapts, where commercial stocked lakes appear, so do predators.

I think you stand a slight chance with cormorants, they're a bit like pigeons in the birding world. I think you stand zero chance including the other species. You're chances are reduced again when you are talking about the NT.

Birders in the UK come in at about 4 million. They have some very strong and financially well off representation, killing mergansers is never likely to happen in my opinion.

We used to get a license for both Mergansers and Goosandrs.
And shot quite a few.
Last time be 10 or so yrs ago ( in scotland)

 

[shakey jake]

Id be more in favour of a ban on farming salmon.
Blaiming the birds for lack of salmon is very short sighted i think.

 

[jall55]

Done

Some areas are plagued with these predators - we control foxes - stoats - corvids - to me no issue with cormorants - get them on the list

 

[devon deer stalker]

Id be more in favour of a ban on farming salmon.
Blaiming the birds for lack of salmon is very short sighted i think.

I agree, in part, but they will never ban salmon farming, it feeds the nation

Nobody is singling out these birds, they are just part of many issues our fish are facing.

 

[JMikeyH]

The suggestion that regulated recreational fishing has any part in salmon decline is ludicrous. The rivers are ****ed because we keep building weirs and flood defences so cretins can chuck up shite new build estates on flood plains and the water companies keep pumping shite into the waters

Then salmon farms, run off, etc

 

[VSS]

. The rivers are ****ed because we keep building weirs and flood defences so cretins can chuck up shite new build estates on flood plains and the water companies keep pumping shite into the waters

So nothing to do with the birds then? They're probably just as pi$$ed off with the state of the rivers as we are.
So perhaps applying for permission to kill more cormorants etc is not the answer after all. The problem clearly needs addressing in a more fundamental way.

 

[Cranborne]

So nothing to do with the birds then? They're probably just as pi$$ed off with the state of the rivers as we are.
So perhaps applying for permission to kill more cormorants etc is not the answer after all. The problem clearly needs addressing in a more fundamental way.

Cormorants etc. kill significant numbers of fish including salmon parr. The cormorant population has risen massively in recent years.

 

[Bo Diddley]

Best extend the list then, let's have kingfishers on there.

Yep, and Herons...

Seriously, the Black Death (Cormorants) have even been seen on our village pond on the green.
They also hunt a tiny piece of the river Nar that I used to fish for wild Brownies. A couple of pals went fishing in Northumberland last week and said the Mergansers were everywhere.

 

[gr cz527]

I am sure all uk waters a 100% catch and release on salmon. Licensed netting is still in place where allowed. I was fishing tweed last year and seen a clutch of 18 goosander chicks with mum. Also had a seal 8 miles up the earn last year chasing salmon and seatrout.

Most small reservoirs and lochs suffer up here with numerous cormorants hammering fish. Anglers have done their part by going 100% C&R now authorities need to look at other ways to improve fish stocks. Pollution and predation should be top of that list.

Signed but think its a struggle to get it through with goosanders and mergansers on there.

 

[VSS]

Cormorants etc. kill significant numbers of fish including salmon parr. The cormorant population has risen massively in recent years.

Well in that case there must be plenty of fish, otherwise the cormorants wouldn't be increasing in number.

 

[Kalahari]

Certainly when the smolts are running in the Clwyd, it is easy to count up to 200 cormorants at the narrow before the mouth of the river, just wonder how many they take in a day.

David.