We have spent hours and hours up in Scotland trying, with varying degrees of success, to find otters. They are not easy and you have to watch the tides, get local knowledge, be very quiet and be very, very lucky. Fortunately though, they are a real success story, being found in every county in the UK. They do have a mystical reputation and people (apart from many fishermen) love seeing them. Inland otters are even harder to see and are pretty nocturnal to avoid disturbance. So, when you get knowledge of a pair that that are reasonably local to you and showing well it becomes a no-brainer to go and see them.
I set out very early in order to get to the site not long after down. Best laid plans etc as some roads were closed due to roadworks. The sat nav helped me out with alternative routes but I was later than I hoped getting there. By 7 I was pulling into the parking area. I had no idea of the layout of the site so I took loads of gear and set off. The walk took me down a river bank till I got to a spot where there were some fallen trees in the water.
It didn't look the most prepossessing of areas, with rubbish and plastic bottles collecting up behind the trees. There was already another lady on site though who pointed down towards the logs and beckoned me forward.
At first I couldn't make anything out in the tangle of roots. Then a brown shape twitched and you could see an eye and a nose.
There was an otter laid up having a snooze. From almost beneath our feet there was a splash and a snort and we saw the other otter - the mother - fishing in the shallows.
As I said, not the nicest of areas with all the rubbish but she seemed happy enough. The youngster then stirred and realising it was was someway from mum swam off after her, squeaking very sweetly as it went.
For the next hour they remained near the trees which seemed a good area for fish, sometimes even coming out of the water onto the overhanging branches.
Mostly though the youngster hung about waiting for mum to bring him food!
I never saw her catch a large fish, only tiddlers like the one above. The youngster seemed happy enough though. Like all otters it was very inquisitive and spent some time exploring an otter spraint on a log nearby. I wonder if it was another one passing through, the male even??
As well as collecting up rubbish the logs also meant duckweed was help up in the shallow giving the otters a green speckled look as they surfaced.
Eventually the pair seemed to get fed up with that area and started to head off up stream fishing and porpoising as they went.
A totally incredible experience. I have never managed to get so close to wild otters for such an extended time before. I hope the cub makes it through to adulthood without any problems. A place I will definitely come back to!!!
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