§ Lord Mason of Barnsleyasked Her Majesty's Government:
What information has recently been received by the Environment Agency concerning damage being done to trout and trout fisheries by cormorants spreading Ligula tapeworm parasites amongst the fish population; and whether a cull of the cormorant population will be considered; and [HL641]
What action is contemplated by the Environment Agency to deal with the problems caused by cormorants. in particular the spreading of the Ligula tapeworm as revealed by the Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Group; and whether the Environment Agency will carry out surveys of trout lakes to ascertain the extent of the disease. [HL677]
78WA
§ Lord WhittyTheLigula tapeworm does not commonly affect trout and there is no evidence to suggest that trout or trout fisheries are damaged by this parasite. Cormorants can spread the parasite between fish populations, most commonly roach, but gulls are regarded as the main transmission vector in the UK. Article 5 of the EC Birds Directive requires member states to establish a general system of protection for all bird species. In Great Britain 1his is through the Wildlife and Countryside Act There is thus no provision to enable a general cull. Licences can be granted to allow small numbers of birds to be killed or taken as an aid to scaring, where the birds present a serious problem for fisheries and where there are no other suitable alternatives.
The Environment Agency has no plans to carry out surveys of trout fisheries to ascertain the extent of the disease.