AN unsubstantiated claim published on a newspaper website has got the Angling Trust (AT) up-in-arms over the issue of otter control.
“Angling Trust calls for cull of otters eating too much fish” screams the headline of an article published on timesonline.co.uk earlier this month.
The AT was quick to deny the claim and published a disclaimer on their website the same day demanding a retraction by the newspaper. At the time of writing, it's still there.
The article totally fails to back up what the headline claims which makes for a prime example of shoddy journalism and puts the paper in decidedly dodgy legal territory. It seems the writer – Simon de Bruxelles – has used it as an inflammatory hook to pull in readers before completely failing to acknowledge it throughout the article.
The Times also ran a printed version of the story – 'Who ate all the fish. The Otter, say Anglers' Wednesday, February 3 p.19, though it is slightly shorter than the electronic one and doesn't use the libelous headline.
In both articles the mention of a cull is not associated with the AT but with fishery owners who, de Bruxelles claims, are: “pressing the Government to allow a cull to keep [otter] numbers to manageable levels.”
Comments that have been left by readers of the web version are wide-ranging in their support for and criticism of the subject.
They include posts from 'Mark Castro', who has worked on the thorny issue of otters in the past with Chris Burt of the Angling Trust, himself quoted in the articles. More significantly, 'Michael Heylin', chairman of the organisation has left a lengthy reply to the story and both writers make a point of denying the AT's support for a cull of otters as the Times wrongly suggested.
On a media platform of this nature it's impossible to confirm whether or not the posts were written by the people they claim to be. It could have been any internet imposter but they toe the line already drawn by the AT.
Comments from unconfirmed sources floating in the realms of cyberspace isn't really the defining action I expect angling's governing body to take on the issue that is dominating the news pages of the angling press, and has now breached the pages of the national press.
If the AT is seriously concerned with what's been written – and it looks like there could be a case for libel – it needs to alert the Press Complaints Commission. It should be issuing an explanatory release to the angling press through which to convey its message to its members and it should have a thorough explanation on its website, not just a small panel displaying a few words alluding to the subject that can't be clicked on to access further information.
I'm yet to see any evidence of this happening and quite frankly, the matter isn't being handled in the professional manner that it and the sport of angling needs from its governing body.
Click here to read the article at timesonline and see the post below for my opinions on the subject.
Saturday, 13 February 2010
The Otter Problem - My View
IT has recently become apparent that the otter is the latest threat to fish stocks, the livelihoods of people who depend on them as a source of income and the anglers who utilise them for sport.
They are currently decimating stocks of big fish in the way that cormorants have wiped out smaller species from some venues and when you add eastern Europeans into the mix, the picture start to look grim.
Many anglers would love to see the AT back a call for a sensible, well-researched, humanely carried out and ecologically sound otter cull. In fact if it did, the AT would probably receive a much needed boost in membership as a direct result.
On the other hand, to suggest culling what will forever be lodged in the nation's psyche as a “warm and cuddly” animal, as Chris Burt calls the public perception of the otter, would be a public relations disaster and serve only to widen the gap between anglers and some other waterways users and nature enthusiasts or 'antis'.
Regardless of how it occurs, something needs to be done about the otter problem that our sport now faces. More anglers joining the AT would help as it would provide a stronger, more united front with which to confront those who oppose the issue or even deny that a problem exists.
The Environment Agency (EA) needs to acknowledge the severity of the problem more seriously. Angling does not need its sympathy, it needs to see a return on the money that anglers fork out for a license each year to do something to prevent the unchecked rise of the otter.
An EA spokesman quoted in the Times suggests that: “where losses are particularly high, or are likely to be a serious problem, steps should be taken to prevent otters gaining access.”
The £100,000 that the EA has designated for otter-proof fencing is not going to cover the miles of river system yet to be subjected to the otter blight. To even begin to imagine that rivers and large lakes can be protected by expensive fencing is madness for too many reasons to list. It's simply not feasible which brings the argument back round to the need for a cull.
It has been pointed out that the otter's first choice from the piscatorial menu is the eel which is already in very real danger of extinction. This is incredibly worrying and for this reason alone the otter – a creature that belongs in the sea – needs to be kept under control so that we do not see the last of this ancient and mysterious fish disappear down Tarka's neck.
When eels have been wiped out and there aren't enough of the other freshwater species to sustain otter numbers, what will happen to them? Maybe they'll go into decline or be forced back to the sea and the problem will come to an end. But anglers will be left with nothing to fish for and a thriving British industry will be in tatters.
I have no doubt that my opinions on the matter are simplistic and I'm not pretending that they are fact or backed up by solid scientific evidence. Again, this is where I and thousands of other anglers need the AT and the EA to shed some proper light on the issue and take positive steps towards finding a solution, not just meekly pander to the whims of a public who simply don't understand the threat posed by the otter.
The article in the Times states that some unidentified 'experts' claim that coarse fishing could be wiped out in five years. While I don't think that this is currently the case, I'm concerned that it soon could be. To prevent it we must put our collective heads together and come up with a way to beat the cutest of enemies that the sport has ever faced in a way that suits all parties.
They are currently decimating stocks of big fish in the way that cormorants have wiped out smaller species from some venues and when you add eastern Europeans into the mix, the picture start to look grim.
Many anglers would love to see the AT back a call for a sensible, well-researched, humanely carried out and ecologically sound otter cull. In fact if it did, the AT would probably receive a much needed boost in membership as a direct result.
On the other hand, to suggest culling what will forever be lodged in the nation's psyche as a “warm and cuddly” animal, as Chris Burt calls the public perception of the otter, would be a public relations disaster and serve only to widen the gap between anglers and some other waterways users and nature enthusiasts or 'antis'.
Regardless of how it occurs, something needs to be done about the otter problem that our sport now faces. More anglers joining the AT would help as it would provide a stronger, more united front with which to confront those who oppose the issue or even deny that a problem exists.
The Environment Agency (EA) needs to acknowledge the severity of the problem more seriously. Angling does not need its sympathy, it needs to see a return on the money that anglers fork out for a license each year to do something to prevent the unchecked rise of the otter.
An EA spokesman quoted in the Times suggests that: “where losses are particularly high, or are likely to be a serious problem, steps should be taken to prevent otters gaining access.”
The £100,000 that the EA has designated for otter-proof fencing is not going to cover the miles of river system yet to be subjected to the otter blight. To even begin to imagine that rivers and large lakes can be protected by expensive fencing is madness for too many reasons to list. It's simply not feasible which brings the argument back round to the need for a cull.
It has been pointed out that the otter's first choice from the piscatorial menu is the eel which is already in very real danger of extinction. This is incredibly worrying and for this reason alone the otter – a creature that belongs in the sea – needs to be kept under control so that we do not see the last of this ancient and mysterious fish disappear down Tarka's neck.
When eels have been wiped out and there aren't enough of the other freshwater species to sustain otter numbers, what will happen to them? Maybe they'll go into decline or be forced back to the sea and the problem will come to an end. But anglers will be left with nothing to fish for and a thriving British industry will be in tatters.
I have no doubt that my opinions on the matter are simplistic and I'm not pretending that they are fact or backed up by solid scientific evidence. Again, this is where I and thousands of other anglers need the AT and the EA to shed some proper light on the issue and take positive steps towards finding a solution, not just meekly pander to the whims of a public who simply don't understand the threat posed by the otter.
The article in the Times states that some unidentified 'experts' claim that coarse fishing could be wiped out in five years. While I don't think that this is currently the case, I'm concerned that it soon could be. To prevent it we must put our collective heads together and come up with a way to beat the cutest of enemies that the sport has ever faced in a way that suits all parties.
Thursday, 28 January 2010
A smashing ton at Viaduct Fisheries?
WHEN ice becomes a factor in targeting lakes for a bite or two, my inclination is to head for the river. The chances of finding moving water frozen over are substantially less than that of still waters and to be honest, I'd almost certainly be at the river at this point in the season anyway.
But not every river holds a head of carp, whereas it seems that nearly every lake does, be it commercial fishery or club water. It also seems that this is the species for which the masses want to fish. Now, this is no revelation and it's been the case for what seems like forever, or at least since I became aware of trends within the sport.
I believe that it's this voracious appetite that anglers have for hauling carp which has fuelled the recent debate over whether ice should be smashed when fisheries become frozen, and indeed, has been the deciding factor when people have chosen to do so.
As a passionate angler, I want to wet a line as much as the next person, but when confronted by a frozen lake I just wouldn't bother to get my kit out of the car. If I wanted to go ice fishing, I'd go to Alaska and do it properly. Chances are, the fish aren't going to feed anyway, and call me naïve, but surely carp wouldn't be the obvious target species in freezing temperatures... would they?
Well apparently they would. News that bosses at Viaduct Fisheries in Somerset, spent two days smashing ice so that a match could go ahead came as a bit of a surprise to me. But it was a 100-peg event so I can understand that they didn't want to lose out on the revenue that it would generate.
But what was a real shock to me were the winning weights. A few pounds of roach right? Wrong. The top three anglers all breached the “magical ton barrier” with the winner putting together a 144lb bag. The story doesn't specify what species the fish were but my money is on that well documented winter feeder, the carp.
To me this is unnatural. How was it possible to catch so many carp so synonymous with lazy summer evenings and floating baits, from a lake where it took the preceding two days to smash the covering layer of ice?
This says two things to me. Firstly, the viewpoint that smashing ice is detrimental to fish stocks is blown clean out of the water. Clearly, it isn't.
Secondly, it speaks volumes about the fish in commercial fisheries. These carp must have become so conditioned to a regular feed-up of angler's baits that two days under ice must have been the equivalent of a heroin addict going cold turkey for them. When the bait started going in again they must have been only too relieved to get their hit as the dinner bell was sounded.
More worryingly, such a high stocking density means that the fish begin to get seriously hungry after two days under ice, as competition for what natural food exists is fierce, and they haven't had the slightest sniff of a pellet upon which they usually rely. So these fish need that bait and were queueing up to be hooked.
And that's really my beef with commercial fisheries. I'm not a biologist but if these were wild fish, surely they'd be lying up and conserving energy, avoiding predators and perhaps feeding sporadically, not consistently over five hours. When I go fishing, I want it to be an experience where I try to outwit a wily creature in it's natural habitat that is behaving in a way that has taken thousands of years of evolution to perfect, and yes, I often fail but that's all part of the game. What happened at Viaduct Fisheries is akin to feeding time at the zoo and I still can't quite get my head around it and the type of angling experience it represents.
But not every river holds a head of carp, whereas it seems that nearly every lake does, be it commercial fishery or club water. It also seems that this is the species for which the masses want to fish. Now, this is no revelation and it's been the case for what seems like forever, or at least since I became aware of trends within the sport.
I believe that it's this voracious appetite that anglers have for hauling carp which has fuelled the recent debate over whether ice should be smashed when fisheries become frozen, and indeed, has been the deciding factor when people have chosen to do so.
As a passionate angler, I want to wet a line as much as the next person, but when confronted by a frozen lake I just wouldn't bother to get my kit out of the car. If I wanted to go ice fishing, I'd go to Alaska and do it properly. Chances are, the fish aren't going to feed anyway, and call me naïve, but surely carp wouldn't be the obvious target species in freezing temperatures... would they?
Well apparently they would. News that bosses at Viaduct Fisheries in Somerset, spent two days smashing ice so that a match could go ahead came as a bit of a surprise to me. But it was a 100-peg event so I can understand that they didn't want to lose out on the revenue that it would generate.
But what was a real shock to me were the winning weights. A few pounds of roach right? Wrong. The top three anglers all breached the “magical ton barrier” with the winner putting together a 144lb bag. The story doesn't specify what species the fish were but my money is on that well documented winter feeder, the carp.
To me this is unnatural. How was it possible to catch so many carp so synonymous with lazy summer evenings and floating baits, from a lake where it took the preceding two days to smash the covering layer of ice?
This says two things to me. Firstly, the viewpoint that smashing ice is detrimental to fish stocks is blown clean out of the water. Clearly, it isn't.
Secondly, it speaks volumes about the fish in commercial fisheries. These carp must have become so conditioned to a regular feed-up of angler's baits that two days under ice must have been the equivalent of a heroin addict going cold turkey for them. When the bait started going in again they must have been only too relieved to get their hit as the dinner bell was sounded.
More worryingly, such a high stocking density means that the fish begin to get seriously hungry after two days under ice, as competition for what natural food exists is fierce, and they haven't had the slightest sniff of a pellet upon which they usually rely. So these fish need that bait and were queueing up to be hooked.
And that's really my beef with commercial fisheries. I'm not a biologist but if these were wild fish, surely they'd be lying up and conserving energy, avoiding predators and perhaps feeding sporadically, not consistently over five hours. When I go fishing, I want it to be an experience where I try to outwit a wily creature in it's natural habitat that is behaving in a way that has taken thousands of years of evolution to perfect, and yes, I often fail but that's all part of the game. What happened at Viaduct Fisheries is akin to feeding time at the zoo and I still can't quite get my head around it and the type of angling experience it represents.
Chub rewards cold water efforts
LOADS of recent headlines and articles have been singing the praises of the chub as a species that will continue to feed, even with a lot of the country still firmly in the icy grip of winter.
My last three outings have all ended – though one of them didn't start – in pursuit of this greedy predator and after a couple of blanks, I finally connected with one of about 3lbs which was a most welcome sight after a good few fish-less hours on the frozen banks.
After lamenting the time I wasted at the Loddon in my last post on this blog, I took my own advice and headed a couple of days later to the river Blackwater. Conditions were indeed perfect though the fish disagreed as they stubbornly refused the cheese paste that I legered in all the likeliest-looking holes. Even into darkness they showed no interest but so angling goes...
Not entirely deterred, I returned yesterday and thought a size 20 hook tied to a 1lb 8oz link and baited with pinkies under a small stick float might winkle out a few dace and roach. It didn't. After flogging the swim for some hours with nothing to show but an aching arm for my efforts, I conceded defeat and put the float gear away.
There was just enough time left to give the leger a go and although the chub weren't playing ball last time, I reasoned that a slight rise in the air temperature might have encouraged them to feed. So with light fading fast I went to the most reliable swim on the river and was rewarded within a few casts with a big pair of rubbery lips slipping over the rim of my landing net, restoring my faith in my bait, tactics, tackle and ability!
My last three outings have all ended – though one of them didn't start – in pursuit of this greedy predator and after a couple of blanks, I finally connected with one of about 3lbs which was a most welcome sight after a good few fish-less hours on the frozen banks.
After lamenting the time I wasted at the Loddon in my last post on this blog, I took my own advice and headed a couple of days later to the river Blackwater. Conditions were indeed perfect though the fish disagreed as they stubbornly refused the cheese paste that I legered in all the likeliest-looking holes. Even into darkness they showed no interest but so angling goes...
Not entirely deterred, I returned yesterday and thought a size 20 hook tied to a 1lb 8oz link and baited with pinkies under a small stick float might winkle out a few dace and roach. It didn't. After flogging the swim for some hours with nothing to show but an aching arm for my efforts, I conceded defeat and put the float gear away.
There was just enough time left to give the leger a go and although the chub weren't playing ball last time, I reasoned that a slight rise in the air temperature might have encouraged them to feed. So with light fading fast I went to the most reliable swim on the river and was rewarded within a few casts with a big pair of rubbery lips slipping over the rim of my landing net, restoring my faith in my bait, tactics, tackle and ability!
Friday, 22 January 2010
Choose carefully...
DAYLIGHT hours are at a minimum at this time of year and this, coupled with the recent extreme weather conditions means it's important to choose a venue where you can be reasonably certain of a return from the time that you have on the bank. Get this right and you can maximise your winter results. Get it wrong and you could well be kicking yourself as I recently discovered...
I learnt the hard way yesterday when I had some free time to go in search of some River Loddon chub. It had rained solidly throughout the previous day which meant the river would be up and quite possibly still rising as surface water continued to run off the surrounding fields and roads – not ideal conditions by a long way.
I didn't consider this properly before leaving however, as I'd already made up my mind and was determined to go to the Loddon having not been there for some time. Upon arrival, a quick look over the road bridge confirmed that the river was indeed pushing through hard meaning fishable swims would be down to a minimum. Still, with blind optimism I unloaded the gear and went off in search of some slack water and hungry chub.
There's another river close to me that I've fished regularly for some years and have got to know its characteristics and foibles. The recently much-hyped Blackwater is a shallow river at the best of times and needs a lot of rain immediately before you fish it to give it some colour and the angler a chance of success. It also runs off very quickly so the window of maximum opportunity is not generally open for very long.
Needless to say, conditions yesterday would have been perfect and hindsight says that it's to there that I should have gone. The Loddon was pushing through so hard and high that swims were to a minimum and so were the chub. I did see several buzzards that spent a lot of time circling low directly above me, as well as mice and the usual maggot munching robins so it wasn't a bad day out in the countryside.
Fishing is a continuous learning curve and this goes to show that no matter how much you want to go to a particular venue, prevailing conditions may mean that you'll do better elsewhere and ignoring them will ultimately cost you fish on the bank.
I learnt the hard way yesterday when I had some free time to go in search of some River Loddon chub. It had rained solidly throughout the previous day which meant the river would be up and quite possibly still rising as surface water continued to run off the surrounding fields and roads – not ideal conditions by a long way.
I didn't consider this properly before leaving however, as I'd already made up my mind and was determined to go to the Loddon having not been there for some time. Upon arrival, a quick look over the road bridge confirmed that the river was indeed pushing through hard meaning fishable swims would be down to a minimum. Still, with blind optimism I unloaded the gear and went off in search of some slack water and hungry chub.
There's another river close to me that I've fished regularly for some years and have got to know its characteristics and foibles. The recently much-hyped Blackwater is a shallow river at the best of times and needs a lot of rain immediately before you fish it to give it some colour and the angler a chance of success. It also runs off very quickly so the window of maximum opportunity is not generally open for very long.
Needless to say, conditions yesterday would have been perfect and hindsight says that it's to there that I should have gone. The Loddon was pushing through so hard and high that swims were to a minimum and so were the chub. I did see several buzzards that spent a lot of time circling low directly above me, as well as mice and the usual maggot munching robins so it wasn't a bad day out in the countryside.
Fishing is a continuous learning curve and this goes to show that no matter how much you want to go to a particular venue, prevailing conditions may mean that you'll do better elsewhere and ignoring them will ultimately cost you fish on the bank.
Saturday, 12 December 2009
Basingstoke Canal Angling Association lives to fish another day
I attended the Extraordinary General Meeting of the BCAA on Thursday, December 10 and below is my report from the event.
ANGLERS will be able to enjoy the great fishing on the Basingstoke Canal in years to come after more than 40 people attended an extraordinary general meeting of the Basingstoke Canal Angling Association last Thursday night, to answer the call for new committee members to save the club from dissolution.
Since the Angling Times ran the story in November, the club had been run by trustees who oversaw several committee positions being filled at the EGM, by volunteers who had come forward following the coverage.
Taking the helm as the new secretary will be Chris Ross, an ex-policeman who members have decided has the right credentials to take the club forward. He'll be joined by new chairman, John Wood, and the club's former head bailiff, Jeff Bunch, who will bring his knowledge and experience to the post of vice chairman. A candidate has also been found to fill the head bailiff vacancy, who will be voted in at a future meeting.
Outgoing chairman, Peter Emery, said: “The publicity has helped us to form a very strong new committee, with a core of experience that bodes well for the future.”
Another boost for the club has come in the form of Danny Williams, South East Regional Officer for the Angling Development Board, who was voted in as a committee member.
“Associations like the BCAA are paramount to the future of angling in this country so I'm really impressed by the way people have rallied round to save the club. I'm fully committed to the association and I'm now hoping that together we can look at some development strategies to use in line with the affiliated clubs,” he said.
ANGLERS will be able to enjoy the great fishing on the Basingstoke Canal in years to come after more than 40 people attended an extraordinary general meeting of the Basingstoke Canal Angling Association last Thursday night, to answer the call for new committee members to save the club from dissolution.
Since the Angling Times ran the story in November, the club had been run by trustees who oversaw several committee positions being filled at the EGM, by volunteers who had come forward following the coverage.
Taking the helm as the new secretary will be Chris Ross, an ex-policeman who members have decided has the right credentials to take the club forward. He'll be joined by new chairman, John Wood, and the club's former head bailiff, Jeff Bunch, who will bring his knowledge and experience to the post of vice chairman. A candidate has also been found to fill the head bailiff vacancy, who will be voted in at a future meeting.
Outgoing chairman, Peter Emery, said: “The publicity has helped us to form a very strong new committee, with a core of experience that bodes well for the future.”
Another boost for the club has come in the form of Danny Williams, South East Regional Officer for the Angling Development Board, who was voted in as a committee member.
“Associations like the BCAA are paramount to the future of angling in this country so I'm really impressed by the way people have rallied round to save the club. I'm fully committed to the association and I'm now hoping that together we can look at some development strategies to use in line with the affiliated clubs,” he said.
Thursday, 10 December 2009
Soar point
LEICESTERSHIRE County Council have just announced plans for a £3m rejuvenation project on the river Soar which will see canoeing facilities, boat races, ferries and the bizarre concept of floating markets on the waterway, all much to the annoyance of anglers who are currently enjoying a great run of form and match weights to over 60lbs.
I know the river well but surprisingly perhaps, not from an angling point-of-view. My brother has lived on a narrow boat on the river around Loughborough for the last four years and I've spent many a sun-soaked/rain-drenched afternoon chugging up and down its picturesque course. I've often taken some kit but haven't ever got any further than catching a few roach and perch on a short whip over the side. The fishing potential has been well documented in the past and even more so recently, I'm planning to go for a fishing rather than boating trip in the new year, to exploit its potential for barbel and chub before the season ends.
So I guess it's fair to say that I have a foot in both camps when it comes to the most recent news. I've always tried to buck the boater vs angler trend and firmly believe that both can pursue their chosen hobby or way of life harmoniously on the same waterway providing each shows a little consideration for the other. We're all there to use the same resource after all.
But in this instance, I think LCC may well have gone too far and have not given anglers due consideration. I have yet to see them or any facilities for them mentioned in any of the plans despite the fact that they must constitute one of the biggest current user groups of the river.
Canoeists already have the use of an Olympic standard centre not far away on the Trent in Nottingham into which the Soar eventually flows so does it really need two sets of facilities just for them at Glen Parva and Aylestone? The British Canoe Union are constantly pushing for more access to rivers at no cost and with the backing of politicians who regularly bandy early day motions around parliament on their behalf. They clearly don't care about steamrollering right over established stretches that have been paid for by anglers, clubs and associations for years.
It seems like an ambitious plan for what relatively speaking is a small river but if it does all come to fruition, I'm concerned that fishing could be badly affected or even lost on some parts of this great fishery. A lot of the proposed development is to take place in and around Leicester so more rural areas through which the river flows may be spared and hopefully remain unaffected.
Click here for the full story.
I know the river well but surprisingly perhaps, not from an angling point-of-view. My brother has lived on a narrow boat on the river around Loughborough for the last four years and I've spent many a sun-soaked/rain-drenched afternoon chugging up and down its picturesque course. I've often taken some kit but haven't ever got any further than catching a few roach and perch on a short whip over the side. The fishing potential has been well documented in the past and even more so recently, I'm planning to go for a fishing rather than boating trip in the new year, to exploit its potential for barbel and chub before the season ends.
So I guess it's fair to say that I have a foot in both camps when it comes to the most recent news. I've always tried to buck the boater vs angler trend and firmly believe that both can pursue their chosen hobby or way of life harmoniously on the same waterway providing each shows a little consideration for the other. We're all there to use the same resource after all.
But in this instance, I think LCC may well have gone too far and have not given anglers due consideration. I have yet to see them or any facilities for them mentioned in any of the plans despite the fact that they must constitute one of the biggest current user groups of the river.
Canoeists already have the use of an Olympic standard centre not far away on the Trent in Nottingham into which the Soar eventually flows so does it really need two sets of facilities just for them at Glen Parva and Aylestone? The British Canoe Union are constantly pushing for more access to rivers at no cost and with the backing of politicians who regularly bandy early day motions around parliament on their behalf. They clearly don't care about steamrollering right over established stretches that have been paid for by anglers, clubs and associations for years.
It seems like an ambitious plan for what relatively speaking is a small river but if it does all come to fruition, I'm concerned that fishing could be badly affected or even lost on some parts of this great fishery. A lot of the proposed development is to take place in and around Leicester so more rural areas through which the river flows may be spared and hopefully remain unaffected.
Click here for the full story.
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