Author Topic: An otter.... (Read 5743 times)

blades · « **on:** September 14, 2011, 09:04:38 am »

We have an otter living in one of our ponds.... not managed to get a picture yet but he's there most evenings Glorious!!

Fleecewife · « **Reply #1 on:** September 14, 2011, 12:04:46 pm »

How brilliant UMF

. We have seen a couple of otters squashed on the road here and a friend who is a gamekeeper complains because otters take some pheasant chicks. Surely that is a small price to pay for the return of such a wonderful animal? Maybe not when it's your chicks I suppose.......I would love to see some live so I will have to go and watch down by the river. Is the pond in the pic/avatar all yours? Ah you say 'one of our ponds' - how many do you have? Lucky folk

blades · « **Reply #2 on:** September 14, 2011, 12:33:42 pm »

Quote from: Fleecewife on September 14, 2011, 12:04:46 pm

How brilliant UMF . We have seen a couple of otters squashed on the road here and a friend who is a gamekeeper complains because otters take some pheasant chicks. Surely that is a small price to pay for the return of such a wonderful animal? Maybe not when it's your chicks I suppose.......I would love to see some live so I will have to go and watch down by the river. Is the pond in the pic/avatar all yours? Ah you say 'one of our ponds' - how many do you have? Lucky folk

Yes the pond in the pic is ours.... we have 2, one pretty big and open and a smaller one which just teems with life. Frogs, toads, newts.... we have herons living here as well. We were lucky when we found this place for sale.
I have attached a couple more pics

Fleecewife · « **Reply #3 on:** September 14, 2011, 01:31:45 pm »

Now I am squirming with jealousy !! Those are the most beautiful ponds and absolutely perfect for wildlife. If they were ours my OH would be out there in a coracle and doubtless my younger son would stock them with trout or something unsuitable so he could fish all day long

I would just lie on the bank watching the life within

blades · « **Reply #4 on:** September 14, 2011, 01:45:16 pm »

Quote from: Fleecewife on September 14, 2011, 01:31:45 pm

Now I am squirming with jealousy !! Those are the most beautiful ponds and absolutely perfect for wildlife. If they were ours my OH would be out there in a coracle and doubtless my younger son would stock them with trout or something unsuitable so he could fish all day long I would just lie on the bank watching the life within

Thank you for the kind comments. The bigger one does contain small brown trout and a feel eels, well at least from a distance that what it looks like the otter and the herons catch? The herons also feed quite a bit on frogs and from what I can see they just about ignore toads all together.

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #5 on:** September 14, 2011, 10:43:36 pm »

Beautiful ponds. <sigh>

Hard to get a sense of scale with pics, but they did remind me of this exchange between two friends at college:

She: blah blah our pond.
He: Lady, that ain't no pond, that's a LAKE.
She: (slightly embarrassed) Oh we always call it the pond. It's just a pond.
He: Lady, most people don't sail a YACHT on their pond!

blades · « **Reply #6 on:** September 15, 2011, 08:01:46 am »

Quote from: SallyintNorth on September 14, 2011, 10:43:36 pm

Beautiful ponds. <sigh>

Hard to get a sense of scale with pics, but they did remind me of this exchange between two friends at college:

She: blah blah our pond.
He: Lady, that ain't no pond, that's a LAKE.
She: (slightly embarrassed) Oh we always call it the pond. It's just a pond.
He: Lady, most people don't sail a YACHT on their pond!

Yeah I know what you mean.... being from London originally and despite living in Scotland for 20+ years I often find I am saying loch or lake or pond.... I guess ours are small lochs (or perhaps lochens) or decent size ponds.... I'm not sure they would qualify as lakes?

The larger of the 2 ponds is (at a guess) around 500m long x 60m wide.

Rosemary · « **Reply #7 on:** September 15, 2011, 10:05:28 am »

They look fabulous

Hermit · « **Reply #8 on:** September 15, 2011, 11:35:54 am »

Otters love duck, they are our equivelent of foxes so be careful with your stock. Once they know the ducks are there they keep coming back. One neighbour had all her ducks killed by an otter. We get them coming out of the sea and running up the burn to the fresh water to get the salt from their fur. We have to make sure we lock up as you would do from foxes. Saying all that they are a good indication of clean water and are a joy to see