It seems like harmless fun but do paddleboarders pose a threat to Kingfishers and other wildlife?

 

The report in today's edition of The Daily Telegraph

ARE paddleboarders threatening the welfare of Kingfishers and the other wildlife that dwells  on  Britain's rivers ?

The issue is raised in today's edition of The Daily Telegraph newspaper which casts a spotlight on what is claimed to have been happening on a stretch of the River Stour in Suffolk.

In Helen Brown's report, a livestock farmer alleges that Kingfishers are being "chased away" by the surge  in paddleboard traffic.

He also maintains that numbers of otters, water voles and grass snakes are being "decimated".

The journalist goes on to describe an incident where another resident witnessed "a gang of youths on paddleboards hurling bottles at a terrified moorhen with her chicks in tow".

Other problems are said to include a "rising tide of litter", drones being flown from boards and loud music from speakers attached to the front of some boards. 

Worse is if motors are fitted to the back of boards, effectively turning them into jet skis.

There is also said to be an issue in sensitive coastal areas where seals are agitated by the proximity of passing boarders and kayakers. 

                                            

Wildlife under threat say residents

In peril from boarders - Kingfishers don't like disturbance