and just to keep things balanced....
Received the following in an e-mail from Fred French M.B.E.
(Yes he's back for all who have missed his daily dozen...e-mails) Aplogies if seen elsewhere.
Olympic Otters Will Become Mascots For 2012 Games
November 30, 2009
LOVEABLE otters are being backed to become unofficial Olympic Games mascots as the host borough campaigns to bring them back to the East End by 2012.
Mayor of Newham, Sir Robin Wales - recently listed as one of the most influential figures in London - is urging the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) to redouble efforts in creating the necessary environment needed to attract the endangered animals back to the area so that they can be enjoyed by tourists and residents alike.
The ODA this year mentioned otters in the Olympic Park Biodiversity Action Plan as a priority species to promote. Plans are to pepper the waterways and Olympic Park with ramps, road tunnels and a cosy holt so that otters are encouraged to migrate there.
But the Mayor wants to ensure a decent habitat is in place and allowed to establish itself within the Olympic zone, which is being promoted by the borough for Royal status after being named Elizabeth Park.
Sir Robin, who spoke this morning on Radio 4's The Today programme, said: "As much as the games are about sport, the legacy is the ultimate prize. A Royal park for East London will bring prestige and symbolise the resurgence of the East End. The homecoming of the otter will do the same for the species. It is an ideal mascot for the Olympics in this sense.
"But we are less than three years away and the likelihood is if something substantial isn't done now, there may be none to see. I understand much of the park is a building site and not yet appropriate for wildlife but the preparation of a habitat within the fantastic waterways is essential."
Following a massive clean-up of the Thames and its tributaries, the otter population has increased to a point where reintroducing the species has become a reality. Just five years ago there were thought to be just 13 in the southeast.
Newham Council is helping deliver a cleaner and greener environment and is a partner in the Greenway Project - a London Wildlife Trust (LWT) backed scheme which maintains and improves a traffic-free route through the Olympic zone and beyond. Work has been done with the ODA and LWT in ensuring species are protected in the run-up to the games - from bats and newts to cockney sparrows and water voles.
Sir Robin added: "We would very much like to see the otter become a familiar face at the same time we are on the world stage Visitors will be able to cherish these quirky little animals and they will hopefully become permanent residents here as part of the legacy."
Girish Rambaran, Olympics officer at the London Wildlife Trust, said: "Otters have been found along the River Lea just north of the Olympic Park. There is potential for them to migrate south but you can't simply pick them up and place them somewhere else - they must be given the necessary habitat that will encourage them to visit through the waterways. Even once the ODA have completed their habitat creation in the Olympic Park, otter visits will not happen overnight. The habitat must be given time to establish itself."
Paul Dennis
Deputy Editor
Angler’s Mail
---------- Post added at 08:11 ---------- Previous post was at 08:00 ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham Whatmore
Round here its more likely to be a squirrel attack although there was some news a couple of weeks ago that a walkers dog was threatened by a wild boar, but I rang the paper and told them Ron was still in Rotherham as far as I knew  |
That is sooo unfair, no way is Ron wild.
Just saw this.....
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