Otters are nesting in the river Segura banks – and could be responsible for the damaged fish being caught on stretches in Alicante.
It has also been suggested that fish swirling on the water surface in a popular stretch along Nancy’s night club, with carp having tails missing, may have otters linked amongst their predators, along with herons and cormorants.
Talisman fisherman John Fisher, 75, who has fished the river Segura and a plethora of other rivers in Spain and the UK, told The Leader: “That sounds like otters – they also do a lot damage in rivers and lakes in the UK.
“However, I have never never seen otters, or any damage that you would see that otters leave, here in Spain.”
Otters, nevertheless, have been spotted on a stretch of the Segura in Murcia on the first weekend of July.
Otters were also present during the last year in the Segura downstream of Rojales.
Otters returned to the Segura in 2013 after decades of absence in the Vega Baja Segura areas of Alicante and also in Murcia.
In 2020 a wild otter was spotted in the suburb of Infante Don Juan Manuel District in Murcia, cited as nesting in the southern bank area of the river Segura.
It was taken to the wildlife recovery centre in El Valle, prior to being returned to the river.
Cleansing of the River Segura has been undertaken during the last two decades, with the the once almost extinct otter returning, at a time of fisherman returning on the banks.
Otters feed mostly on fish and crustaceans, which became elusive for their diet amid pollution of toxic chemicals into the water.
River beds drying up alongside the river during droughts also played a part in the otters disappearing.
River otters, the largest member of the weasel family, have affected fishing enthusiasts catches, being the main fish predators.
