Some common sense on "protected" animals.

[steveR]

Hunters kill 25 beavers in Germany to prevent flooding​

Animals shot dead to protect Oder dike from risk of collapse
4 4:54pm

The beaver population in Germany is estimated to be around 40,000 after a reintroduction scheme Alamy
Hunters slaughtered 25 beavers in Germany for digging holes in a flood prevention system.
The animals were shot dead in Markisch-Oderland, in the eastern state of Brandenburg, to protect dikes from the risk of collapse.
The beavers are said to have dug holes in the Oder dike, a system of flood protection embankments built along the Oder river, the natural border between Poland and Germany.
Henrik Wendorff, the president of the Brandenburg farmers’ association, said: “Disaster protection takes precedence over species protection.”
He said that the burrowing of the beavers into the dikes posed a significant risk to the stability of the flood defences, which are crucial for protecting homes in the area.
Markisch-Oderland officials confirmed that 25 beavers were “removed” from the Oder dike by hunters in recent days.

Heavy rain forecast​

They added that the damage so far has not been severe but that they were not prepared to take any chances with heavy rain forecast.
Floods, originating in Poland, are being tracked along the Oder moving towards Brandenburg.
The state’s environment department has issued warnings in recent days about major flooding that could affect roads, buildings and rising water levels.
Beavers often dig into dikes during periods of bad weather to seek refuge, which can lead to structural damage.
Officials are hoping that the beaver cull will prevent any further weakening of the crucial dikes.
The main purpose of dikes is to prevent flooding. The structures usually run parallel to a body of water as opposed to a dam which runs across it. The main purposed of a dam is usually to store water.
The beaver population in Germany is estimated to be around 40,000 following successful reintroduction programmes for the species that began in the 1960s.

 

[steveR]

Henrik Wendorff, the president of the Brandenburg farmers’ association, said: “Disaster protection takes precedence over species protection.”

What a pity the Badger lovers don't have the same levels of commonsense.....

 

[topground]

No doubt when culverts in the UK are blocked by reintroduced Beavers there will be a backlash from the public whose homes are flooded.
Will that lead to an outbreak of common sense? Who knows.

 

[som farmer]

No doubt when culverts in the UK are blocked by reintroduced Beavers there will be a backlash from the public whose homes are flooded.
Will that lead to an outbreak of common sense? Who knows.

no, it will mean a successful introduction, of an extinct, from uk, animal.

and that is more important than flooding peoples houses.

such is the world we live in, utter madness.

 

[Welderloon]

No doubt when culverts in the UK are blocked by reintroduced Beavers there will be a backlash from the public whose homes are flooded.
Will that lead to an outbreak of common sense? Who knows.

Not a chance of a common sense outbreak, quite a high chance of further blue tongue, schmallenberg & dare I say, sooner or later a malaria outbreak though with all their well thought out wetland/beaver nonsense

 

[GEMS]

no, it will mean a successful introduction, of an extinct, from uk, animal.

and that is more important than flooding peoples houses.

such is the world we live in, utter madness.

Whilst we insist on building on flood plains and complain when they flood.......

 

[yellowbelly]

Will that lead to an outbreak of common sense? Who knows.

Highly unlikely.
It seems one of the main qualifications to become a modern day politician is a total lack of common sense.

Whilst we insist on building on flood plains and complain when they flood.......

Common sense would ask the question, "Why have these areas not been built on in the past?"

It would also lead to an understanding why, for those small populations already living and farming there, that maintenance of drainage infrastructure is so important/essential.

 

[Canada Farmer]

Any one here see that YouTube clip of a badger being run over???
Just terrible cruelty!!!

 

[Devil's advocate]

Not much common sense to allow a population of 40,000 beavers.

 

[matthew]

Not much common sense to allow a population of 40,000 beavers.

Friend in Germany tells me that that country is way ahead of us, in rewilding.

Beavers were introduced to create 'beaver ponds' to slow river flow, but reality means a river bordered by deciduous trees and arable land, becomes a mile wide wetland swamp.

Wolves are causing havoc with young calves and sheep flocks.

 

[Ffermer Bach]

​

The beaver population in Germany is estimated to be around 40,000 following successful reintroduction programmes for the species that began in the 1960s.

It doesn't sound all that successful to me, if they are destroying dykes that prevent flooding and loss of life/livelihoods.

 

[Ffermer Bach]

What a pity the Badger lovers don't have the same levels of commonsense.....

My partner is Austrian, and she seems to have a far more pragmatic attitude to animals, I think maybe the germanic peoples aren't quite so "ah, lovely cuddly animals" as we British seem to be.

 

[Dry Rot]

British politicians and tree huggers have short memories. Just because they were here once, doesn't make them native. Remember to recent excitement over the escape of Cinnamon? The coypu? There were so plentiful as to be considered 'native' but became a major pest...without the tendency to fell trees.!

Coypu - whatever happened to the ones in East Anglia?

There were once 200,000 coypu in East Anglia, but trapping campaigns that started in the 1960s eventually eradicated them.

www.shootinguk.co.uk

 

[Dry Rot]

My partner is Austrian, and she seems to have a far more pragmatic attitude to animals, I think maybe the germanic peoples aren't quite so "ah, lovely cuddly animals" as we British seem to be.

Badger hunting with dogs is a recognised sport in many European countries otherwise our native terriers, which have been worked here for hundreds of years without danger to the badger population, would be extinct. Sports like cock fighting, bear baiting, etc. were encouraged because men fought hand to hand with edged weapons. They wouldn't want to encourage such blood thirsty tendencies today or we might revolt and deal with our leaders in similar manner and that would never do!

 

[som farmer]

all these animals vanished for a reason, they competed with mans desire to manage the countryside. Some for 'sporting' reasons, some for direct competition.

this is a densely populated country, we no longer have huge expanses of 'non' farmed land, as they have in other parts of Europe. The 'wild' countryside we do have, are recreation areas for man to walk etc.

so any introduction, of any animal species, will be in close contact with people, farming etc. Anybody who thinks carnivorous animals that are 'released', will not come into close contact with man/farming, needs their head examined.

predator animals, lynx wolves etc, are basically lazy, they will predate the easiest source of food, a sheep is easier to catch, than a deer. Reproduction is controlled by food availability, easy source = more successful breeding, mothers will teach young the easiest animal to hunt.................

rivers have been managed for centuries, they are now mismanaged by idiots with fancy ideas of returning land to 'ancient' wetlands. Idiots in another branch of civil servants, think its ok to build houses on flood plains.............................. you couldn't make it up.

Beavers alter waterways, in N America, they do a fantastic job of returning desert to green land, elsewhere in America, they are strictly controlled, to avoid flooding etc. There are no deserts in the UK that need to to returned to 'green'.

otters, they have successfully returned to rivers across the UK, including those rivers that have been successfully rebuilding salmon and trout numbers, for decades, otters can feck that in a couple of years, apologies, otters don't predate salmon trout .......

we cannot turn the clock back, there are to many people in the UK to allow new native species to repopulate, without 'severe' management.

 

[Dry Rot]

British politicians and tree huggers have short memories. Just because they were here once, doesn't make them indigenous. Remember the recent excitement over the escape of Cinnamon?

Coypu - whatever happened to the ones in East Anglia?

There were once 200,000 coypu in East Anglia, but trapping campaigns that started in the 1960s eventually eradicated them.

www.shootinguk.co.uk

 

[bluebell]

Coypu as i understand were, are not a "native" Uk species, but are native to south americia, were they bred for their fur and escaped like mink?

 

[Dry Rot]

all these animals vanished for a reason, they competed with mans desire to manage the countryside. Some for 'sporting' reasons, some for direct competition.

this is a densely populated country, we no longer have huge expanses of 'non' farmed land, as they have in other parts of Europe. The 'wild' countryside we do have, are recreation areas for man to walk etc.

so any introduction, of any animal species, will be in close contact with people, farming etc. Anybody who thinks carnivorous animals that are 'released', will not come into close contact with man/farming, needs their head examined.

predator animals, lynx wolves etc, are basically lazy, they will predate the easiest source of food, a sheep is easier to catch, than a deer. Reproduction is controlled by food availability, easy source = more successful breeding, mothers will teach young the easiest animal to hunt.................

rivers have been managed for centuries, they are now mismanaged by idiots with fancy ideas of returning land to 'ancient' wetlands. Idiots in another branch of civil servants, think its ok to build houses on flood plains.............................. you couldn't make it up.

Beavers alter waterways, in N America, they do a fantastic job of returning desert to green land, elsewhere in America, they are strictly controlled, to avoid flooding etc. There are no deserts in the UK that need to to returned to 'green'.

otters, they have successfully returned to rivers across the UK, including those rivers that have been successfully rebuilding salmon and trout numbers, for decades, otters can feck that in a couple of years, apologies, otters don't predate salmon trout .......

we cannot turn the clock back, there are to many people in the UK to allow new native species to repopulate, without 'severe' management.

No sportsman wants to see the extinction of the animals he hunts. If they are exterminated, that
is the end of the sport and the end of the means to train men and dogs to hunt them. It is not just the fox that teaches her young to hunt.
.

 

[Vader]

Beavers were introduced to create 'beaver ponds' to slow river flow, but reality means a river bordered by deciduous trees and arable land, becomes a mile wide wetland swamp.

How much do they slow a river? The water behind the dam is normally upto top of dam and flowing over.
So if most are nearly always at capacity, then any rain just goes over the top of dam and so Normal flow.
All they do is hold water in areas creating a bog..

 

[DrWazzock]

How much do they slow a river? The water behind the dam is normally upto you of dam and flowing over.
So if most are nearly always at capacity, then any rain just goes over the top of dam and so Normal flow.
All they do is hold water in areas creating a bog..

That’s right. Anybody who has even tried to dam up a watercourse soon realises the water just finds a way round. All the beavers are doing is greatly widening watercourses, flow and damage. You can’t hold water back for long.