Bridgnorth anglers call for cormorant cull

Mr Preece said cormorants had consumed up to 80% of fish stocks

Anglers in Shropshire are calling on the government to change the way wild cormorants are controlled.

Angler Brian Preece said the birds were in danger of wiping out stocks of coarse fish such as Roach and Dace in the River Severn.

Mr Preece said the licensing process, through the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) was "too complicated and drawn-out".

The government has announced it plans to review the licensing process.

Defra refused the Bridgnorth Angling Society a licence to cull the birds eight years ago.

The club said it would be applying for another license within the next few months, but that the process needed to be simplified.

Over the last 20 years, Mr Preece said wild cormorants had consumed "70% to 80%" of the dace and roach from the river in Bridgnorth.

Mr Preece said: "Unless something is done about it, the Severn will be in a very sorry state. There must be the right balance between the birds and fish."

Normally found on the coast, Mr Preece said up to 50 cormorants were now nesting along the river in Bridgnorth.

Mr Preece also said local businesses would lose out if the club's 400 members were forced to fish elsewhere in the country.