I have been lucky enough to experience elusive otters in Ireland twice so far. Once at very close and unexpected quarters gliding majestically and silently on the river Laune near Killarney and another time out of my hotel window in the Ice House Hotel in Sligo.
The first time otter swam close roughly 5 metres from me as I walked along the bank, calmly viewing me before it sank silently amid the tangled mass of submerged tree roots. I was immediately addicted to this elusive mammal and sought to try to view more in the wild.
After another encounter of an otter from my glass panorama of my hotel bed in the Ice House Hotel in Sligo, I was hooked.
When I first started working on the Dodder Otter survey for the IWT Dublin, our team of volunteers spent hours walking the banks around the bridges along the Dublin river recording typical signs of otters such as spraint and tracks.
We found definitive evidence of otters amongst us in our urban area. My commitment this time was driven not just by my affinity with this mustelid but by the need to record solid data about their presence on the river. Why did I feel this way?
At the time, a proposed cycle track was being proposed for the Dodder and I quickly realised that our hours spent scouring the banks and soft mud of the river could be used as data in an EIS in relation to a planned cycleway. What we were doing on a volunteer basis could affect a larger scheme of development.
It should be an epiphany for all conservationists, that the passion we have for nature and the data we can collect can be utilised and be part of a collaborative effort to monitor and protect our natural heritage. What we do individually does make a difference. I am inspired by Fergal Ó Cuinneagáin whose one man battle has helped preserve the precarious Corncrake on his farm in Mayo. As Ghandi said, 'Be the change you want to see in the world.'
I now have bought a trail camera and am attempting to record otter activity at known sprainting sites along the Dodder.
I am happy to report that today, I captured my first image of an otter under a famous Dodder bridge. What next for my ongoing search for this beautiful elusive creature? Perhaps, I will follow the work done by Galway branch IWT in taking samples of spraint and getting genetic analysis done. My great otter adventure is clearly just beginning.
The first time otter swam close roughly 5 metres from me as I walked along the bank, calmly viewing me before it sank silently amid the tangled mass of submerged tree roots. I was immediately addicted to this elusive mammal and sought to try to view more in the wild.
After another encounter of an otter from my glass panorama of my hotel bed in the Ice House Hotel in Sligo, I was hooked.
When I first started working on the Dodder Otter survey for the IWT Dublin, our team of volunteers spent hours walking the banks around the bridges along the Dublin river recording typical signs of otters such as spraint and tracks.
We found definitive evidence of otters amongst us in our urban area. My commitment this time was driven not just by my affinity with this mustelid but by the need to record solid data about their presence on the river. Why did I feel this way?
At the time, a proposed cycle track was being proposed for the Dodder and I quickly realised that our hours spent scouring the banks and soft mud of the river could be used as data in an EIS in relation to a planned cycleway. What we were doing on a volunteer basis could affect a larger scheme of development.
It should be an epiphany for all conservationists, that the passion we have for nature and the data we can collect can be utilised and be part of a collaborative effort to monitor and protect our natural heritage. What we do individually does make a difference. I am inspired by Fergal Ó Cuinneagáin whose one man battle has helped preserve the precarious Corncrake on his farm in Mayo. As Ghandi said, 'Be the change you want to see in the world.'
I now have bought a trail camera and am attempting to record otter activity at known sprainting sites along the Dodder.
I am happy to report that today, I captured my first image of an otter under a famous Dodder bridge. What next for my ongoing search for this beautiful elusive creature? Perhaps, I will follow the work done by Galway branch IWT in taking samples of spraint and getting genetic analysis done. My great otter adventure is clearly just beginning.
