A repeat of a survey undertaken in 1999, it aims to record the activities of otters in and around the city. It covers all waterways, and I have been allocated a section of the Alphin Brook near Ide. The previous survey revealed a lot of activity in this region, so I'm keen to find some signs of life! The main purpose of this visit was to get a feel for the area and ascertain the best access points to the site. But we also had to keep our eyes open for spraints and prints.
Today was our first visit to the brook, having waited for water levels to drop after recent extreme weather. Signs of flooding were everywhere; debris was blocking the weirs, and was stranded at head height in trees and bushes. We were looking for recent spraints, but ideal locations were difficult to find as a lot was still under water. We waded through a gloopy mixture of mud and horse poo (thanks to the nearby stables) getting down to the water's edge wherever we could. As usual, my hair became attached to several bramble thickets, and we had to climb through fences and over gates to follow the watercourse.
Unfortunatly, our hunt for signs of otter was in vain. A chat with the manager if the estate (in his tractor, of course) informed us that there had been some fairly recent otter sightings in the area. So we had some hope still, as the actual survey is to be carried out in the last two weeks of February.
The mud was, however, in excellent condition for finding animal tracks. Sadly none were otter, but we did manage to identify fox and badger, and also found plenty of fox droppings - a later brief view of a fox dashing across the field confirmed their presence! Some of the other tracks baffled us somewhat...
.....can you guess what they are?
To find out more about the survey:
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