Sawbills

[jimb 30]

I was granted to shoot some mergansers gooseanders and a cormarant under licence as part of a smolt sheparding trial .

These birds are one of the main reasons that salmon numbers are on the decline ,mergansers and gooseanders the later being the bigger of the two need 300-700 gr of fish a day .

This merganser regurgitated a parr up once the dog had retrieved it now this junior salmon wieghed 7.8 gr so the vast numbers these predatory birds are devouring every day is wrecking young salmon stocks in our rivers .

Why in this country most things that are predatory that need controled are protected ?

Edited May 12, 2013 by jimb

[billybaltic 308]

Too many do gooders mate, more worried over animals out in the country than there own kids half the time, they know were every cormarant is in the country, but haven't a clue were there kids are.

[bell 3,606]

522148_504872886227124_211943189_n.jpg

I was granted to shoot some mergansers gooseanders and a cormarant under licence as part of a smolt sheparding trial .

These birds are one of the main reasons that salmon numbers are on the decline ,mergansers and gooseanders the later being the bigger of the two need 300-700 gr of fish a day .

This merganser regurgitated a parr up once the dog had retrieved it now this junior salmon wieghed 7.8 gr so the vast numbers these predatory birds are devouring every day is wrecking young salmon stocks in our rivers .

Why in this country most things that are predatory that need controled are protected

 

How many were you licensed to shoot out of interest ? How far inland were you shooting, always associate red breasted merganser with the coast. If they are causing havoc on a river they ought to be shot end of. The amount of money the salmon fishing brings in to the local economy cannot be underestimated and every par/smolt that these birds take has a knock on effect for sure.

[jimb 30]

The licence was granted to shoot around 6 mergansers 6 gooseanders 2 cormorants between 5 guns on 4 differant beats only to be shot on a certain date useing steel shot .

I have seen mergansers up as far as the source of this river and on highland lochs .

[air gun ant 1,666]

did you eat them lol

[3175darren 1,101]

Bloody things are every where,

[NEWKID 27,277]

For years the cormorants have ruined our river and canal ( I'm not a game angler but the damage is the same), I've counted over 30 cormorants up on one pylon, the small bream and roach I the canal have been hammered now, and the eels ( which were a nuisance have all but gone...they would be killing the par too in the Exe

We've said for over 20 years they're needs to be a cull, but to no avail