There are about 200 otters in Burgenland. Even when they have long since had enough, the protected animals mutilate the fish, which then usually die in agony.
Norbert Pingitzer is annoyed – it is not the first time that an otter has visited his ponds and performed disgusting things with the fish. “They were lying around everywhere and sometimes still fidgeting,” says Kobersdorfer, who compares otters with foxes in the chicken coop. “They just can’t get enough. Even when they have long since had enough, a deadly play instinct comes through.” This manifests itself in bitten off fins, noses, eyes. “This time he grabbed a pike, ate it on the stomach and just left it there,” says Pingitzer, in his waters around 600 trout, 300 char, several pike and carp with a total weight of 400 kilos cavort. The damage caused by the otter this year is “in the mid four-digit range”. Of course, Pingitzer is in contact with the otter ombudsman Andreas Kranz. “He advised me on building the fence, which is funded by the state,” says Pingitzer. “He can’t do more.” According to Kranz, the otter population in Burgenland is 200 individuals. The water martens are strictly protected. “And they don’t have any natural enemies,” says Pingitzer, who enjoys writing books about motorcycles, cars and history. You will never read anything about otters from him.
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