seals

[weed]

Just Back from the Muirton Beat on the Tay where two large seals swimming about one of which looked decidely unwell and kept trying to beach itself on the sand banks. Spoke to an old man walking his dog who said that a number had been shot but few carcases recovered this may be one of the swimming wounded.
Phone the RSPCA totally uninterested ? not a great spectacle for the kids nor myself who had to keep getting out of the water as it obviously thought I was lunch.

[williegunn]

Here are a couple of pictures, Tyne Andrew and Charlie H should recognise the beat if not the seal.





Usually the marksmen, who need a special addition to their licence, get a clean kill. It is not very often the bodies are recovered as they tend to sink.

[altmor]

Same thing on Waulkmill (Tay) last Saturday. Although this time, the seal had been wearing a bullet proof vest - he came up to the surface, rolled back with his head and shoulders out of the water, and proceeded to toss his head back and forth, swallowing a good sized fish. The fish's tail flapped about before it was gone, then the seal slowly made off downstream. The bare faced cheek - six of us in not the best conditions, (one of which included this forum's very own Fruin), didn't touch a thing all day, yet there he was - waving a fish at us from afar !!

[madkeen]

Weed how did you get on any fish off muirton yet?

[weed]

Madkeen, no fish as yet, there were a couple of lads spinning they never touched anything either.

[tayspringer]

There needs to be a serious discussion on getting these creatures removed permanently in 1 big swoop. Possibly not PC to say this but a cull is required. They are making easy meat of the fish trying to return to the sea. I hate to think how many Kelt's do not make it back to the sea because of the seals. Possibly the problem needs to be addressed from Broughty Ferry right up to Perth. There are hundreds of them on the sand banks in Dundee and possibly the same in the Friarton hole.

It has been suggested to me that this could be one of the main reason along with climate change and all the other ideas why the fish are not there. The Tay board really needs to act before they destroy the salmon fishing on the Tay. I was told by one angler that he imagined that the board does nothing because the seals only really affect the Lower beats on the Tay - possibly the riparian owners etc have them as pets to chase the fish to their beats on the middle and upper river!!!!! ;D ;D

More importantly these creatures are dangerous. They might be depicted as fun loving things but fact is some poor angler might be enjoying a days fishing on the stormont beats and find himself being either seriously injured or even killed by one of these creatures. They do bite and will chase fish. You are wading in the water and one of these hits you, you would have been better being hit by an express train!!! I got first hand experience of one of these creatures showing his teeth on the Muirton side beside the croy in the deep hole 2 years ago. I have also seen what happens when an angler gets attacked by one. I was unfortunate enough to see an angler who has been bitten a number of years ago in Aberdeen.

[munro]

There were several sighting of seals on the Teith last season -one spotted well up river by the Bailliff who found it having a nap on the bank outside the fishing hut
Its hard to believe that overfishing in the North Sea and climate change has not contributed to the incease in seals coming well up the river

[weed]

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/6313907.stm

Perhaps an answer to the seal problem

[fishtail]

Excellent solution!!!!

[williegunn]

Can any of you fly dressers give me a pattern to imitate one of these? Seal fur and jungle cock eyes perhaps?

One of these on a fly rod could be good sport.



Now just a question of backing.

[fishtail]

Can we have a couple of these sent down to the Tees barrage?

Thats the black and white one, not the furry one with the big eyes!

[tayspringer]

DOES ANYONE KNOW WHERE I CAN GET A KILLER WHALE AS A PET? THESE ARE DESPERATELY NEEDED IN THE TAY ESTUARY!!!!

[elwyman]

williegunn said:

Can any of you fly dressers give me a pattern to imitate one of these? Seal fur and jungle cock eyes perhaps?

One of these on a fly rod could be good sport.



Now just a question of backing.

Just try a very very long Sunray Shadow with a few boars bristles tied at 90 degrees to the head for the whiskers!

[stoater]

Tayspringer, loath as I too am to share a beat with a seal or two, I don't think "the time has come to remove these creatures permanently in one fell swoop". We're dealing with Nature here, and any efforts to beat her into submission are doomed to failure.......it just won't happen, we don't live in Canada or the Alaskan ice floes, think of the damage it would do to the wider public perception of our sport.
Maybe the Tay proprietors should look again at how the Tweed system copes with this natural "wasps round a jampot" syndrome. After all, right on it's estuary doorstep (and salmon migration route) lie the Farne Islands, Holy Island etc. which I believe is home to the highest and most localised concentrations of Seals in the U.K. There is even a thriving seal-watching local trade.
The odd rogue seal will always chase the Salmon into the river. They are quietly and efficiently sent back most times with no hullabaloo.
Obviously Seals still cause major damage outside the River, judging by the claw marks on captured fish. They probably catch most of the descending kelts too. But if the River in question is suitable for the propagation of the species, Nature will use that River to it's capacity, somehow.
I feel seals are just one of the several ongoing threats to our fishings. The real threat is Global Warming.
The effect of this is happening. So far, the temperature changes seem to be affecting the bottom of the food chain most. I'll stop now, before I give myself a bad nights' sleep. But it is not going away!

[lomond]

I saw on the Scottish news tonight that there is a pod of killer whales in the Firth of Forth eating the seals !! Think i'll book that day on the Teith soon.

[altmor]

Whilst on the R. Ewe last season, a couple of us were discussing how to create an effective seal barrier to the river mouth.

Drawn steel wire mesh and a range of net options were discussed though the downside of maintaining debris caught up in the "obstacles" knocked this idea on the head.

I thought how would nature deal with the problem of seals entering the river. As seals are entering the rivers for food - salmon, what's nature's equivalent to seals becoming food - the answer - Orka.

Now it's a known fact a seal will high tail it in any direction on either the sight or sound of a killer whale. An anchored dummy whale at the river mouth (acting like a scarecrow) with the added possibility of submerged sound speakers emitting the killer whale "moan" could to me be an answer.

It's as politically correct as you could hope to be these days, without bullets, anti's complaints, trapping etc, - a 5m dummy whale, rope and anchor block wouldn't cost the earth and the submerged speakers, if linked to a solar energy source, would be sustainable.

Now on rivers like the Ewe - this may have mileage owing to the smaller estuary neck where the river flows out into the sea. On the Tay and Tweed however a larger project would need to be considered - say a submerged Orka every 50ft across a suitable point of brackish river.

I haven't looked into any research on this theory, and don't frankly know if any exists. I only know the Killer whale is nature's way of controlling seals, and does so better than anything else I'm aware of.

I'd be interested to hear if anyone has any thoughts or has come across such a theory. My rationale to this theory being "use nature to beat nature".

[salmoseeker]

I saw that too, get that pod of killer's into the Tay estuary asap! If I had my way I'd cull seals in the same way Red Deer are culled and in the same manner I'd charge people for the sport. I'd then give the money to whoever best supports the future of the fish (salar).

[rennie]

Regarding the seals in the Tay,they are there because theres nowt for them to eat where they should be, at sea,fish the "Grain" first light in autumn when theres a few fish about Ive seen 4 or more big bu####s too.Above the croy,deader, below free rain all the way to the sea god knows how many,is that why fish dont lie all the way through S.A.C. beats like they used to?.Unfortunately leave cuddly little dead sammy seals washing about in Perth guess what public opinion will be towards anglers.Watched a pal sneak up on one at the croy on Muirtons and fed it a big brick right between the eyes,it never even blinked.Good idea to give them all a lead aspirin,but think where it will happen would you want to launch so many grammes of lead at a seal in a public place and be responsible for unwanted consequences?
Oh yes better off without them but whats the real root of the problem? Pedro.

[wilson]

I'm sure this happy young lad (or lassie) could come in and solve your problem if you were willing to give up some aboriginal rights. Hey, everyone has to eat.



There's also selling them as bait for catching these lovely creatures.

[stoater]

Altmor
Seriously, your idea of a realistic (scent trace and all?) of an Orka, to discourage seals venturing into estuarine waters sounds good. Tapes of "calls" work too. This sounds a very good idea for use at specific times.