ok you fish slingers I posted this question on another post but thought it deserves a real talk.
I was fishing a river downstream of where you guys feed the bugs with old dead hatchery fish and came across 5 river otters. As I have never before seen any on the river before it got me wondering.

By providing these wonderful critters a free and easy sorce of food are we asking for trouble? In a few years are we going to be cussing at them as they try to steal the fish we fight? Will there presence on the river be the death of thousands of native smolts as soon as the feeding stops? Do they even eat fish or am I just paranoid?

What do you all think. I know we need nutrients in these rivers and we need to stop selling bug killers for green lawns so the bugs have a chance to reproduce and become food for the fish. Maybe stop all oil leaks in our cars to make it easier for the emergers to break the water surface...... all die of bird flu so the fish get a few years to recover. you know the little things we do make a difference.

Yes they eat fish. And yes you are paranoid.

Otters prefer live fish over dead ones, and smaller fish (whitefish, suckers, squaws, trout, smolts and sculpins) are the ones most likely to be consumed.

Before "management" came along, much larger escapements provided many more carcasses. It did not attract armies of otters upriver.

Could they have been minks?? I know they are starting to pop up all around the Snoho basin since they where "freed" from the mink farm in Sultan a few years ago.

The otters are actually pretty big at about 3' long and 20-25#'s (or more). The minks are not quite half that size. I've only seen the river otters in the mountains, and always in the water, although they could easily survive along the Pilchuck. Probably minks that you saw but I would sure like to think otters have added minks to their diet and have moved in to re-claim thier terratory.

There is a family of otters on the Wunoochee. Seen them many times this year, always munching on a dead old fish.

I was going to say that I also thought otters prefer to capture and kill their own prey. I've seen them on rivers a few times, and they were actively fishing, when they weren't just playing around. I've never seen one working on a dead salmon carcass.

I saw one of those on the Wynoochee also. Dogfish's observation contradicts what little I thought I knew about the critters. I'll ask around among some wildlife bios next week.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.

broodbuster, ya otters looked like large beavers with a skinny tail. had lots of them minks come check me out at the boat launch in snohomish this year pritty tame would almost eat out of my hand. they were cute. these guys looked like they would take your hand off if you gave them half a chance. they stood on there hind legs kind of proped up by the log and hissed at me until I left.
Salmo
The hole they were in was full of wild smolt sized fish that were more than happy to bite even with some of the otters swimming from log to log. I didn't see them actualy eat anything but made the assumtion thats why they were there.
Doc
I'm all for bio-diversity but when the army of otters heads for the river I may take up lake fishing. I haven't much liked swimming mammals since the harbor seal in everett tried to take the coho I was cleaning from me!! didn't much care for the sealion that chased the chum to my feet as I was walking from johns creek either he and the fish both beached themselfs about 3 feet from me. the guy in front of me bailed over a log to hide from them but I think he still grabbed the fish.

the otters are comming!! the otters are comming!!
all beware

River Otters are usually present on most coastal river systems, for heavens sake they were here before us and they do have a hankering for fish flesh. But they are the least of our worries.

Rattler - these are river otters, and they inhabit rivers. They have been present on the Pilchuck forever, and hopefully always will be. Chucking dead fish does not attract more otters. Nothing is more fun than watching a family of otters on the river, in my opinion.

I'd be more concerned about all the cracker jacks fishing the river for "trout" during the nine months that it's closed......I'm sure we humans kill many more baby native steelhead than a family of river otters.

Sit back and enjoy them next time......you will probably even catch more fish.

Ike

Have seen the Wynoochee otter family, also have seen otter "up the Chehalis". They are fun to watch!!!

Two summers ago, fishing pardner caught a steelhead, instead of packing it down river to the next few holes he put it up in the brush. We came back up river about 45 mins. later.....2 otter were in the area.......low and behold, they had eaten part of his fish.

I'd rather see otters in the wild, than many of the other forms of life that I see on many weekends........lol

Are the Otter looking critters I see on the docks and swimming around the Marina "River Otter's"? Look the same. They sure like to crap on the dock.

Should also be mentioned that otters usually travel in "families" of 2-5 members, so seeing a group of them attracted to the carcasses doesn't necesarily mean that the dead fish are a big draw to all otters, just that a family found an easy meal.

I would suggest giving river otters a wide berth when they're around. I was attacked by one a couple of years ago on the Snake River. It chewed on my leg for a while until I managed to get back on the boat. They are in the mustelid family, along with badgers and wolverines.

bbean, I belive this family was more than ready to take me down and gobble all the evidence!!

back to the serious side, I'll bet no one 50 years ago thought dams on the columbia would be a good thing for the sealions and provide easy meals I just worry we are not thinking ahead enough, and may end up messing stuff up. yes, there used to be more otters in the rivers but the fish runs wern't so bad off then.

Yes also to ikiss, I scream at the kids trout fishing in the summer and to the a-holes who talk to me about what great fishing there is above the dam in the spring, or how the real season starts in march. I have made my share of phone calls. and will continue to.

to me some bio-type should spend a bit of time checking this out just in case, I'd hate to do more damage than we have already.

might as well shut down hactheries by the same logic...otters and mink pound them hatchery ponds and smolts at release when they can..as well as kingfishers and herons...