51.The otter and pike

 

The otter, once driven to near-extinction by pollution, hunting and destruction of its habitat, is making a return to the heart of London.

In the 1930s, the Thames and its tributaries were home to the 4ft-long creatures. In 2005 there are thought to be no more than 13 otters in the South-east.

A massive clean-up of the Thames and its tributaries, a project to return the otter was   launched several years ago and wildlife experts hoped that cleaning up the water will bring these wonderful creatures back. The Captain told us “A couple of years ago, I saw a family party of six otters crossing the Thames just down from Purley Creek Marina, so it just goes to show that sometimes man can clean up the environment"."At a cost " said the First Mate "these cuddly looking beast are real, mean fishing machines and can easily wipe out a fishery in no time at all."

Otter hunting was banned in 1979. Otter hunting reached its peak of popularity in the years preceding World War I. At that time there were more than 500 hounds in 24 packs which hunted otter, isn’t it wonderful that since this barbaric fun blood sport has been banned that otters can now actually be seen in many parts of the Thames region. The words of Oscar Wilde still run true today on what he said about fox hunting “The unspeakable in full pursuit of the uneatable'

The pike today on the Thames is now under a new threat. No not by pollution, well sort of but a different type, they are under threat from extinction due to the flood gates being opened for the arrival of thousands of Eastern Europeans. These people have no respect for our fisheries or laws and any fish they catch they eat thus depleting our fish stocks. They often fish with no licenses and use a range of illegal methods to catch “our fish” for their “pots”. When approached about their unwanted activities they suddenly pretend that they can’t speak English and use a range of tactics to avoid being brought to justice as criminal which they are. If one had to ask a true Brit “Would you rather see one pike or a thousand Polaks ?”, we all know what any  true Brit would choose.