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By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

The otter runs around the pond, which is firmly covered with the plastic net, looking for a way in

A retired couple who set up CCTV cameras in their garden to catch the mystery predator which was eating their goldfish finally discovered it was a hungry otter.

Pensioners Elizabeth and Harry McDougall were devestated to find their collection of 27 goldfish, in two ponds in their garden in Carlisle, had been wiped out.

All that remained after the night-time attack were fins and scraps of skin.


Sneak thief: The hungry otter, below right, appears by the side of the pond and first sees the plastic mesh

The couple restocked the ponds and fitted a strong plastic mesh, installing CCTV to try to find the culprit.

Three weeks later, the predator struck again, killing all 12 of Mrs McDougall's new fish.

This time the CCTV recorded the incident on camera and now the couple have released the footage to show the thief at work.




source: dailymail

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Conservation officers in Bristol first became aware of the otters after finding droppings by the city's floating harbour

Conservationists have captured this amazing footage of a new breed of 'urban' otter which is shunning the countryside in favour of city centres.

Researchers have discovered that the usually-reclusive water creature - immortalised in Kenneth Grahame's Wind In the Willows - are encroaching into cities.

They set up hidden cameras and captured an urban otter making a home by a floating dock in the heart of Bristol city centre - just yards from a shopping mall.


Researchers believe greater access to food is one of the main reasons for the change - just like the growth of the urban fox


The footage - the first to ever show otters in a city centre - has stunned experts who had previously believed the furry creatures were too timid to venture out of the countryside.

They believe greater access to food is one of the main reasons for the change - just like the growth of the urban fox.

Phil Quinn, an ecologist who launched the study, said: 'It is just extraordinary. They are a very thriving population.


The footage - the first to ever show otters in a city centre - has stunned experts who had previously believed otters were too timid to venture out of the countryside


'There have been reports of otters in smaller cities but never in a city centre like this.

'Most ecologists working with otters would look at this situation and say - no chance.

'We were not even thinking of otters and then we just found the evidence - which is their droppings. They are very distinctive looking and very distinctive smelling things.


source: dailymail

In this photo provided by Zoo Miami, a litter of two Giant River Otter pups are held during their neonatal exam on Wednesday, March 2, 2011 at Zoo Miami in Miami, Fla.


The male, left, and female pups were born at the zoo on Jan. 31, 2011, and are expected to open their eyes within the next week and begin to learn how to swim.


source: Daylife
photo: AP photo

By PAUL HARRIS

Snouting about: It appeared to be a perfect morning for the otters to undertake a spot of fishing - but they had to overcome one small problem first


They say we’re heading for the coldest winter in decades. Thermometers are set to plunge to record lows and snow, ice and misery are on the way.

But down by the water in Somerset, if you’ll pardon the pun, everything seems to be a little ‘otter’.

Dancing on ice, this family of charismatic predators sees no ­reason to be deterred by the big freeze. So it’s on with the fur coats, and down into the cold water.

Taking a lead from their Polar-dwelling ­mammal cousins the seals, these otters cracked a hole in the thinnest section of ice this week and went hunting for a snack from nature’s freezer.

One emerged a little later with a handsome perch that must have imagined it was perfectly safe to swim in open waters when there was a 2in thick roof over its head.

The family, probably a bitch and her three cubs, were messing about on the Somerset Levels, a wetland area in the middle of the county. Dad, it appears, was dog tired at home on the couch (another name for the holt that otters build in the riverbank).


Ice skating: Perhaps not realising how cold the ground was, one fleet-footed otter skips across the river, eyes wide looking for a thin ice spot to break


Follow me: Sitting at the ice's edge, the otter gestures to her family to join her on the ice from the comfort of their holt in the riverbank reeds


Lynne Newton, who took the pictures, said: ‘I saw something on the ice and I thought it was a mink.

'As I got closer I heard the ice cracking. Then I saw it was an otter . . . and another, and another, and another.

‘I stood watching for about 20 minutes. I could see them cracking the ice, swimming underneath it and catching the fish.’


Fishing trip: Following their mother's lead the three cubs join her on the icy water as they look for a good place to set up camp to hunt for food


The Eurasian species (Lutra lutra) is native to the UK, but was threatened with extinction two decades ago. A recolonisation plan was put into action, and now their presence is a sure indication of clean water.

In Somerset, 83 per cent of casualties are caused not by chemicals, sewage or the stripping of river vegetation, but when otters try to cross the road. The fact that this is where most people encounter otters makes the sighting of four of them skating especially unusual.


Breakfast is served: Having jabbed through the thin ice with a paw, this otter tucks into a tasty treat - but there didn't appear to be any second helpings


But by the weekend, they might have to learn to ski as well. Forecasters are warning that the second bout of Britain’s Big Freeze is set to bring up to 8in of snow in some parts overnight. Temperatures are likely to fall below -10c.

So what will happen if the otters’ ice rink becomes impenetrable? Happily, they can also survive on birds, mice and anything else that doesn’t see them coming first. But they will need to fluff up those fur coats for a while yet.


source: dailymail