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Otters
Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2008 9:11 am
by Trent Hale
I think that otters kill and eat more fish than an eagle. Should they be killed? And they have nice coats,water proof? They will eat all the fish they can catch and move on to your next fishing hole.
RE:Otters
Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2008 2:31 pm
by fishaholictaz
Otters will eat a lot of fish but I don't think law allows them to be just killed. Something you should look into! Let us know!!
RE:Otters
Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2008 12:10 am
by platinumroof
Forget about the otters. Cormorants eat their body weight in fish every day and there are thousand and thousands of them.
RE:Otters
Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2008 6:44 am
by Fish Antics
platinumroof wrote:Forget about the otters. ....there are thousand and thousands of them.
I am sure the otters and cormorants are saying " and there are thousands and thousands of them!" as they notice the increase in the population of new humans in Washington state.
I meet fishermen stomping on perch because they think they are trash fish and fishermen throwing muskie in the bushes for the same reasons. We're quick to point to animals as if they are trying to take the last fish from "our" fishing spots. Yes, birds and some critters consume large numbers of fish. I think we should "forget about it" and do our best to be responsible for our own impacts , , , besides . . . who has time to worry about it if you're too busy getting hazed by mosquitoes, waterskiers and jet skis!
RE:Otters
Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2008 10:29 am
by bpm2000
Micropterus wrote: I think we should "forget about it" and do our best to be responsible for our own impacts , , , !
well said.
RE:Otters
Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2008 11:04 am
by ChrisB
Agree with the last few posts.
BTW, nice Gallery of pics Trent. Where's all your 9 lbers?
RE:Otters
Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2008 7:52 pm
by Trent Hale
ChrisB wrote:Agree with the last few posts.
BTW, nice Gallery of pics Trent. Where's all your 9 lbers?
I haven't caught one this year but still tring. The 9 was marcs fish,the pic with the tape and rod.
RE:Otters
Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2008 9:03 pm
by fishnislife
I had an otter swipe a swimbait from me last year. I could have killed'em them. I haven't seen them around much this year. Where are you seeing them?
fishnislife
RE:Otters
Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 6:21 am
by ChrisB
That sucks fishnislife. I always thought how mad I would be if an otter took a swimbait of mine. Whenever I see one surface, I make sure to cast the other direction.
RE:Otters
Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 7:09 am
by topdawg47
Sometimes, people are just plain dumb. If these so called "trash fish" Perch and Muskie, etc where the last source of food on Earth, I don't think anyone would be stomping/killing these so called trash fish. Perch are decent eating fish to me atleast...
Anyway, different strokes for different folks..
RE:Otters
Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 7:34 am
by AaronE
fishnislife wrote:I had an otter swipe a swimbait from me last year.
There's a dinky little pond over in Kent that I like to fish when I've only got an hour or two to kill. I was out there last year before my knee surgery, just floating along and catching 1 pound bass on every cast, when something hit my brand new $7 spinnerbait. The drag was screaming and my float tube was moving along the weed line like I had a motor on it. I figured I'd hooked the grand-daddy bass in the pond, but then the otter jumped out of the water and I could see my shiny new spinner in its mouth. Broke the line, took my spinner, and the bass stopped biting entirely after that.
RE:Otters
Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 11:45 am
by Gone Fishin
Ok, well trust me on this one the otters and cormorants aren't going to ruin the fishing in a lake. Sure they eat fish, but the majority of what they eat is small enough not to be caught by you anyway. They are a natural predator that have been fishing there longer than we have and the fishing is still going strong. Its not like it is a brand new thing threatening our fisheries. The ammount they eat in comparison with the ammount that people harvest isn't even much of a comparison, so i wouldn't worry about it. As far as losing a lure to one, that could be frustrating but its not very common so I wouldn't worry about it too much.
RE:Otters
Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 7:05 am
by BassinBomber
Well said Gone Fishin,..I see them all the time buzzing the shores of Lake Wa,..my kids love them when we are feeding the ducks,..they do scare fish away,..but so do we,..LOL
RE:Otters
Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 9:45 am
by clam man
We have had otters, eagles, cormorants, and fishermen on my lake for as long as I can remember. Net result: lots of Bass. I wouldn' t worry about it, and you will look like an idiot if you try and lobby the state to kill the otters, so some folks can catch and release more Bass.
Let them be, if they catch more fish than you, they are better fishers!
RE:Otters
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 7:04 am
by Trent Hale
[quote="clam man"]We have had otters, eagles, cormorants, and fishermen on my lake for as long as I can remember. Net result: lots of Bass. I wouldn' t worry about it, and you will look like an idiot if you try and lobby the state to kill the otters, so some folks can catch and release more Bass.
Let them be, if they catch more fish than you, they are better fishers!
I love otters,in soup or garnished with gravy! They tast better than fish.
RE:Otters
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 7:26 am
by Trent Hale
bigbasstaz wrote:Otters will eat a lot of fish but I don't think law allows them to be just killed. Something you should look into! Let us know!!
Yes you can harvest Otters.
RE:Otters
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 7:29 am
by Trent Hale
platinumroof wrote:Forget about the otters. Cormorants eat their body weight in fish every day and there are thousand and thousands of them.
An otter eats 3 times its weight a day.
RE:Otters
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 7:30 am
by Trent Hale
topdawg47 wrote:Sometimes, people are just plain dumb. If these so called "trash fish" Perch and Muskie, etc where the last source of food on Earth, I don't think anyone would be stomping/killing these so called trash fish. Perch are decent eating fish to me atleast...
Anyway, different strokes for different folks..
Otters are not picky eaters they eat all fish!
RE:Otters
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 7:33 am
by Trent Hale
ChrisB wrote:That sucks fishnislife. I always thought how mad I would be if an otter took a swimbait of mine. Whenever I see one surface, I make sure to cast the other direction.
And They don't C&R.
RE:Otters
Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2008 5:57 am
by BassinBomber
Sounds like you're describing some anglers I know of Trent!