2.0 Factors Impacting on the Pike Resource

2.1 POLLUTION

Over the past number of years the ever decreasing trout stocks on Irelands premier brown trout fisheries has been attributed to an apparent increase in the pike population of these waters. However, trout stocks continue to decline in waters, which do not have a so called pike problem. Adjoining rivers and streams of some of Irelands brown trout fisheries which once also produced an abundance of wild brown trout are now also suffering a similar fate yet many of these shallow fast flowing mountain streams are completely devoid of pike. The common problem facing all fish species is declining water quality , not just on Ireland's wild brown trout fisheries but on all the countries major fisheries, but while some authorities will attribute the decline in non salmonid species to pollution the very same authorities attribute the declining wild brown trout stocks to an increasing pike population. Pike and salmonid species have lived in harmony for centuries. The Erkina river in County Laois is a prime example of excellent trout and pike fishing. The Erkina is a relatively clean river and has not suffered interference by man. Great angling writers such as Buller and Jardine, who since as far back as the 1850s have spent a considerable amount of time fishing on the Western lakes. There are countless references by these writers of the excellent trout and salmon fishing whilst enjoying the best pike angling in the world. This was at a time when water quality and pollution was not an issue.

Eutrophication, or nutrient enrichment, is the principal threat to the water quality of Irish lakes. This form of pollution is caused by the inputs of nutrients, principally phosphorus, either directly to lakes or more commonly through the inflowing rivers, at concentrations well in excess of natural levels. Eutrophication results in excessive production of planktonic forms of algae, Cyanobacteria (formerly known as blue-green algae) and macrophytes (rooted plants) offshore and may also lead to increased growths of macrophytes and attached algae on and near shorelines, especially near the mouths of nutrient enriched streams. The planktonic growths can cause a marked reduction in light penetration through the water column and also lead to oxygen depletion in the deeper layers during periods of stratification, as the dead cells sink to the bottom and decay. Numerous EPA reports confirm that while inputs from sewage and, to a lesser extent industry, contribute to eutrophication, discharges from agricultural sources are largely responsible for the upward trend in the incidence of pollution. Ill timed application of fertilizer to surrounding land and farm yard run off are primary examples.

Salmonids are the most sensitive of freshwater fishes to the effects of pollution. The western lakes and other brown trout fisheries such as Sheelin once enjoyed oligotrophic or pristine status. This was reflected in the quality of both brown trout and salmon catches from these waters. However, the EPA's latest report classes Sheelin as highly eutrophic while Loughs Corrib, Mask and Conn have been classified as Mesotrophic with Mask in particular sliding away from its once pristine state very quickly. The current state of these lakes is far from ideal with respect to salmonid habitat and the continuing decline and further destruction of spawning redds does not bode well for the future. Silting due to enrichment of once clean gravel runs ideal for spawning is now a major issue. Stocked trout are not an answer and uneconomic in the longer term. The survival rate of the limited fry that manage to hatch in such an unfavourable environment is dismal. In the current economic climate replacing this potential stock with reared fish is not viable, the environmental conditions being far from ideal for these fish also.

Coarse fish species while being more tolerant of an enriched environment are also suffering at the hands of pollution as is suggested by catch reports on the Shannon system as recently as 2002. Bream appeared to disappear from many hotspots. When significant catches did finally begin very late in the season many of the fish were in very poor condition with red sores appearing along their flanks and a loss of weight. Authorities have suggested that this was a viral disease but caused by what? Pollution perhaps.

2.1.1

The Shannon has been described recently as Europe's longest open sewer a reflection of which can be seen in declining catches. The Shannon is no longer viewed as a premier angling destination by visiting anglers. The last two years have confirmed this with the numbers of visiting anglers down in some areas by as much as 90%. Pollution is the culprit for this loss.

The Western Lakes and waters such as Lough Sheelin were in the past, Europe's best wild brown trout fisheries. They were also the worlds best big pike fisheries. Both species lived side by side and complimented each other in achieving a fine balance. In the past the Shannon and Erne and their adjoining lake systems were the best coarse fisheries in the world and also produced big pike. Again coarse fish species lived side by side with pike and struck a fine balance. The fisheries were not overrun by any one species. Declining trout stocks on Ireland's wild brown trout fisheries has been attributed to predation by pike but pike have been there for centuries and there is ample evidence to suggest that fine trout fishing was experienced until recently. The common thread is the increasing levels of pollution, not the increasing predation from pike as has been suggested by the fisheries boards. Many independent reports from organizations such as the EPA and Greenpeace have confirmed this. Sheelin has now suffered a further blow as it is overrun with jack pike, which are doing untold damage to all fish stocks in the lough as they are unpoliced by their larger brethren who have been removed by gill nets.

The pike has been made a scapegoat for unwillingness to address the real problem by the boards and avoid crossing swords with local authorities and other inept state agencies. Ireland's pike angling resource is one that requires little management and resources yet has the potential to return great rewards if marketed correctly. The resources used to manage the labour intensive action of predator control would be better spent trying to address the pollution problem while at the same time the pike stocks could recover and generate an alternative source of revenue until such a time as trout stocks recover and the loughs they inhabit provide a reasonable environment for the survival of all fish species.

2.1.2

2.2 PIKE CULLING

The culling of pike on any water in Ireland is considered by the pike angling organisations to be totally unnecessary and counter productive and to continue in any way would conflict with a new Irish pike policy that hopes to promote conservation, protection and promotion of the species.
Some of the negative impacts of culling are listed below:

· Perception of potential tourists that Irish authorities have no respect for the pike species or in using the pike species to attract overseas pike anglers
· Preventing angling service providers in the locality of culled waters from enjoying revenue from pike anglers, both overseas and domestic
· Upsetting the stock balance of fisheries (which practical experience has shown leads to an explosion of pike of smaller size, thereby perpetuating the perceived need for further culling)
· A perception by some game anglers that culling is acceptable and imperative, leading to a hatred by some, of the pike species in general

Conclusion:
It is the wish of Irish pike anglers that pike culling ceases and that all fish are afforded equal status on all waters.

Note: Gillnets have traditionally been the method used by Fishery boards in Culling/Transferring Pike. We ask that the use of gillnets is prohibited in any form in Irish fishery management.
Some photographs have been chosen solely for the purpose of describing the results of Gillnetting.

2.3 PIKE TRANSFER

Pike Transfer causes two problems, which effectively result in imbalances in the transfer and recipient waters. Pike form a natural balance with their prey in a structure termed a pyramid hierarchy. The removal of large pike from a body of water will allow the smaller pike to thrive without predation, each passing year seeing a growing survival in small pike until a water body is considered to be over run, requiring more and more transfer. The same can apply in the removal of small pike. In the past pike under 90cm have been removed from some waters. This in effect leads to a reduction in male pike as many don't grow beyond 10lb, say 80cm thereby creating a situation that the remaining large female pike could possibly end up spawnbound and dead.

However moving pike to other waters i.e. recipient waters will impact upon the balances existing within those waters. Increasing the number of pike within a water that is already balanced will put extra pressure on the available prey fish and thereby in time limit the size of pike within that water. The transfer of pike in the view of the Irish Pike Organisations creates knock on effects, which strongly suggest no transfer should take place, instead placing more emphasis on habitat protection, pollution and water quality problems. Further on in the submission though, we have proposed a transfer policy in which the views above are taken into consideration on particular waters and where stocks need to re-established .

Below is an extract from "The case for pike" by Leon Roskilly. The entire article can be read on www.anglersnet.co.uk

· Pike have existed. Largely unchanged, for millions of years. They have evolved strategies for living in balance with their prey.
· Nature maintains a natural balance of around 10% pike, organised into a pyramid hierarchy. Should the balance be disturbed, nature will fight to restore the natural balance, to the detriment of the fishery.
· Pike will help to maintain the health of a fishery by eliminating diseased and dead fish.
· Pike-free waters may end up full of stunted and diseased fish, prone to fish kills in hot weather.
· Pike will keep insect-eating fish numbers down to safe levels, thus avoiding the disaster of eutrophication when excessive phytoplankton growth leads to water pollution and fish deaths.
· Moving pike unbalances two waters, instead of just one, has a risk of transferring disease and parasites, and probably results in the lingering death of most relocated fish anyway.
· Pike fishing can bring in additional revenues to trout only fisheries, and provide more varied sport for today's fly fishing enthusiasts.
· Try to involve local pike anglers and/or the Pike Anglers Clubs in a programme of education and management.

2.3

2.4 PIKE DISEASE

Results obtained from the Pike angling consultation document, which was distributed in November 2001, indicates a worrying trend, that of a Pike population suffering from various health defects. 69% of Pike anglers who returned forms commented on catching Pike with lesions, sores, growths and fungus. The bulk of the tumours or lesions found in Pike are now believed to be malignant lymphomas or Cancers.

Central & Regional Fisheries Boards report for 1992 / 1993 made two specific references to the alarming increase in disease in coarse fish.

· Page 5 states:-
"Fish were found on the Shannon and Erne which were ulcerated, distressed and in very poor condition. The cause and extent is being studied by the Department of the Marine"
· Page 23 states:-
"Through 1992 and 1993, there was an alarming increase in reports of ulcerated and distressed Bream, Perch, and Roach, mainly from the Athlone, Portumna and Shannonbridge areas. Up to 10% of anglers catches were affected. A major fish kill of mainly Bream was recorded on Lough Allen. It was suspected that disease rather than pollution poisoning was the cause. In Conjunction with Department of the Marine biologists, the Board initiated a major investigation into the cause and extent of the problem."

However, the Board undertook no serious attempt at scientific research into these diseases.

Approximately 20 years ago the Pike population on Pollapucha Reservoir, Blessington, Co. Wicklow water was almost wiped-out by an outbreak of tumours or lesions and Pike are still being caught to this day with these defects. Pollapucha supplies drinking water to Dublin City and County.

Prof. Maire Mulcahy reported lymphoma in Pike in Ireland in 1963. In Ireland, Pike lymphoma has been found in all major areas of Pike distributions with an incidence of up to 12.5%. Funded by Enterprise Ireland, Prof. Maire Mulcahy UCC and Dr. Sean Callanan UCD have recently supervised a three year study into the suspected viral association and such information is pivotal in the evaluation of this model of cancer development with applications in studies of viral induced cancers in man.

Due to a lack of funding, this very important research has not been successfully concluded.

2.4

2.5 POACHING

There have been widespread reports of organised poaching being carried out by gangs on various pike / coarse waters. It would appear that some of these gangs contain well-known criminal elements. We would suggest that where these gangs can be identified the relevant Regional Fisheries Board liase with the Criminal Assets Bureau with a view to bringing these activities to an end.

2.5

2.6 CORMORANTS

The number of cormorants has increased substantially in Europe since their protection under the Birds Directive in 1979. Two species occur in Western Europe, the Great Cormorant and the Shag. In relation to the Great Cormorant there are two sub-species, Phalacrocorax carbo carbo and Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis. The sub-species carbo carbo mostly live around the coasts and seldom move in winter while carbo sinensis nest inland and tend to migrate to warmer climates in winter. According to figures supplied by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Ireland has between 5,000 and 6,000 nesting pairs producing on average 2.5 chicks every year. Their numbers have increased steadily since 1979 when the population was about 2,000 nesting pairs. About 10,000 to 12,000 birds migrate to France each year. They consume a wide variety of fish with a daily intake of up to 500g (1lb).

Figures from our affiliated clubs would tend to disagree with official estimates of the bird population here. The IFPAC would estimate the nesting population at twice the official figure.

A Conference on the Cormorant was held in Strasbourg in March 2002 jointly hosted by the French Government and the National Angling Federations of France. Speakers at the conference outlined the effects an increasing population of the bird has on fisheries. Calls were made on the EU to reduce the population to 1970's level on a Europe-wide basis. As an initial step a census of the bird population will be held in January 2003.

Ireland is one of four countries who are not participating in the census for lack of some person or organisation to co-ordinate the project here.

2.6

2.7 POOR ENFORCEMENT OF BYE LAWS

The 1990 pike conservation bye-law prohibits:
(a) The taking and killing by any person of more than one pike on one day
(b) The taking or killing by any person of any pike exceeding 6.6 lbs. (3 kilos.)
(c) Any person having in his possession more than one dead whole pike or, alternatively, more than 3.3lbs. (1.5 kilos.) weight of pike flesh or parts.
The above mentioned prohibitions do not apply to specimen pike (as defined in the bye-law). A specimen pike from a river is over 20lbs [9 kilos.] or from a lake 30lbs [14 kilos.]. This means that only one such specimen pike may be taken and killed by any person on any one day and that only one such pike, in whole and ungutted form, may be in the possession of any person.

Comments:
We are informed that prosecutions taken under this Bye Law have failed as the pike in question were not weighed on certified scales. In addition a serious decline in the availability of specimen pike has been evident placing great importance in a change in law that will ensure complete protection of all specimens. To rectify this problem, the Federation submitted amended Bye Law proposals to the Department of the Marine several years ago. The Dept. of the Marine referred those proposals to the Central & Regional Fishery Boards who generally accepted and supported them.
The proposals were based on a change from weight to length for ease of enforcement and provided for the protection of specimen pike. For further information see Section 6.4.

2.7

2.8 POOR PIKE ANGLER REPESENTATION ON FISHERY BOARDS

In relation to pike angling representation on the Regional Fishery Boards, two problems arise:

1. Pike are classified as a coarse fish and this brings pike anglers into conflict with another group of coarse anglers who only fish for coarse fish species such as roach, bream etc. It is generally felt that pike angling should be a category in it's own right. This is agreed by the Irish Federation of Pike Angling Clubs, the Irish Pike Society, the National Coarse Fishing Federation of Ireland and by Bord Failte in the promotion of pike angling.

2. Trout anglers taking coarse angling seats on regional fishery boards. On three of the seven regional boards, four seats allocated to coarse anglers are currently held by trout anglers, some of whom have absolutely no interest whatsoever in coarse angling. This arises under the current share certificate scheme whereby well funded trout clubs purchase coarse angling certificates and by doing so purchase coarse angling votes.
This anomaly must be addressed.

2.8

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