A guide to watching Otters at Kempston Mill

Quite a few people are asking about the Otters at Kempston Mill, they have never seen them so how do I do it? The answer to this question is not straight forward because there are many things, that need to come together, to see these animals in the wild. Here are some hints and tips for Kempston Mill but they may help you on your local patch.

1. How do we know Otters are in the area?

Spraint is the word used for Otter droppings. Otters spraint to mark their territory so they like to leave them somewhere prominent, in their terms. Quite often man made structures become ideal spraint points, for example ledges under bridges, overflow pipes between lakes and rivers and the following: 

Concrete outflow

Zoomed in on the above outflow, a very popular spraint point!

A very fresh spraint!

Spraint on the steps by Kempston Weir

These man made spraint points are particularly useful, during dry periods, because you can see that they have been used recently by the wet patches where the animals come out of the water. This helps because you don't have to keep track of the number of spraints and you have a reasonable idea of how recently the animals were there. With the steps at the weir they use the top step so you can see damp patches on each step when they have been there recently.

Natural spraint points are many and varied but tree roots are often used.  

Large tree with prominent root system

Zoomed into the above tree root, spraint circled

This tree is just a few yards up stream from the concrete outflow.

Tracks are another useful thing to learn so you can check out the muddy river banks. I don't find this option as useful here because it is well used by dog walkers so there are hundreds of tracks to pick through.

The other thing that is a dead give away at the moment is the discarded Crayfish claws along the bank.

Crayfish head and claws

 The Otters certainly seem to like Crayfish:

The slope by the weir wall is a regular eating spot

Double click for the full size image and count the claws!

2. So we know the animals are here now it's just a matter of spotting them.

Timing is critical, these inland Otters are mostly nocturnal as they don't like meeting up with Humans and dogs, so night is likely the best time but we humans don't see too well in the dark! So it has to be dawn and dusk to give us half a chance. I'm a morning person so all of my sightings have been around dawn and a little after.

So it's dawn and you are in the right place where is that Otter? Swimming up the middle of the river giving great views, right? Wrong!

Occasionally they are but most of the time they are under the water grubbing around in the reeds and tree roots at the edge of the river looking for food so you have to look carefully. You are looking for ripples and bubbles fizzing up to the surface, maybe some reeds are moving, but there is no wind. A long stream of bubbles as an Otter moves across the river underwater. These are all pointers to there being an Otter in the area. With experience the ripples differ from those of other animals and birds on the river. Otters are large animals, up to 1.2m long, so the waves tend to be quite large, unlike those of dabbling ducks or feeding Moorhens and Coots. Swans make a similar sized wave and can catch you out if they are feeding in a reed bed.

Even when you have seen all these signs you may have to be patient. I have followed these signs for 100+ yards along the river before finally getting a glimpse of the animal itself. Last time I was out I was convinced there were 2 Otters in the area but it was 200 yards up stream before I saw one and then the other to confirm it.

Otters tend to be silent in the water unless startled when they do a loud splash as they crash dive and get out of the area. They are quite noisy eaters though and there have been times when I have heard an Otter chomping on something and that has been the sign that it is around. They often take larger prey items onto shore, usually under the cover of some thick vegetation, or the fishing platforms that can be seen along the bank here. If you do happen to hear them like this then patience is required as you wait for them to finish their meal and get back out hunting.

Otters are also masters at giving you the slip. They can move good distances underwater without a bubble or ripple to give them away. In my experience once you have a general direction of travel along the river then you can usually rely on them continuing that way. If you lose them then continue along the bank looking for the signs again, often you will relocate them, but not always.

Otter

It is also useful to watch the behaviour of other wildlife in the area. Most birds like to keep well away from Otters and will move out of an area when an Otter arrives. A Moorhen might take to a tree, which is unusual, so this behaviour may point to there being an Otter around. Even Mute Swans are not happy when Otters are close by and will start their characteristic hissing. So keep an eye on what else is happening around you, don't just focus on the Otter itself.

3. Time of year.

I've had a great year this year as the resident female had 2 well grown cubs with her through the spring and summer. Normally I don't expect many sightings after early spring through the summer until late autumn. This year has been different, with the 2 cubs in tow, the female had to work harder and longer to get enough food for the whole family, and now it appears that the 2 cubs have not moved far out of the females territory and are still together.

It doesn't help in the summer with all the bank side vegetation blocking the view of the water which may be more of a factor in not seeing Otters at this time in other years. Of course the extra vegetation also works in your favour in that you can keep out of view of the Otter and that brings me on to the next section.

4. Frequency of visits

I visit the site most days so I have a lot of time in the field giving me a lot of opportunity to see Otters. General rule of thumb would be a sighting every 1 or 2 weeks, sometimes better, sometimes worse. So I am getting a lot of sightings but more often than not it's a bust, except that there is plenty of other stuff to see and hear.

5. Camouflage

I don't go out in a ghillie suit but I try to keep a low profile. Often I have been within feet of the animals and just by squatting or kneeling down and keeping my face covered, by the camera, they don't seem to know I am a human (I don't know what that says about me!), so they just carry on their business. Other times they see you and crash dive, never to be seen again! So keep as quiet as possible and keep out of sight where possible. Covering your face is generally a good idea when wildlife watching so in winter wear a scarf or a Buff, lots of wildlife seems to recognise the human face and associates it with a bad time, I can't think why! 

6. Gotchas

Mink may catch you out as they are good swimmers, on and under the water, but they are half the size of an Otter and tend to utilise the bank more than an Otter would. Mink will run along the bank for some distance, Otters often come out on the bank but usually go back into the water to move further along the river. I've heard it said that Otters drive Mink out of an area but that certainly hasn't been my experience here. I've had a Mink moving along one side of the river while an Otter has been working the other side. There is some overlap in their prey items but enough variation that they seem to tolerate each other in the same area.

Mink

7. Other info

My patch extends from Kempston Mill up to the island in Biddenham Loop Country Park, I seldom go further up river but I know the Otter(s) have been seen further up stream between there and Bromham Bridge, at least.

Here is a link to a map of the Kempston Mill area with relevant points marked.

Check out this link for some great information on Otters from the Sussex Otters and Rivers Partnership.

Otter at the Mill

The Otters seem to be very active again at the moment. JA had 2 in the Mill pool at Kempston Mill on Sunday morning, following on from my sighting last week. This morning I came across a single Otter up near Church End. This animal was much more confiding than last weeks and I had great views down to a few feet. Here are the pictures:

Another day, another Otter

Met up with JA along the river at Kempston again this morning, he was already watching an Otter and handily, due to time constraints, it was coming down stream :-)

By the time I arrived it was just downstream from All Saints Church. We followed it downstream to just below the bypass bridge before it turned around and headed back upstream stopping at a favourite sprainting site on the way!

Otter sprainting

I had assumed this was a sprainting site but hadn't been up that side of the river to check for certain, no need to now.

I had to leave at 8am and JA was still following the Otter upstream past the Back Channel. He lost sight of it shortly after though so I didn't miss much.

Another great start to the day.

What a morning!

This morning the plan was to head along the river at Kempston to find the Otter again. Fortunately the weather was good, the heavy showers we are having at the moment seem to be confined to the afternoon, so I headed off just after 6am. Blackcap and Chiffchaff were both heard as I headed up towards Kempston Mill. There was also sign of recent tree cutting (yesterday I think) between the ILEX building and the Mill, surely this work could have been carried out outside of the birds breeding season. I hope there weren't any Woodpeckers already nesting or anything else for that matter.

As I reached the Mill I could hear a Sedge Warbler singing in the reed bed opposite. I also spotted JA's car in the car park. A quick text and shortly after the response that JA was already watching an Otter upstream. My pace quickened as I continued upstream. More Chiffies, Blackcaps and a second Sedge Warbler were heard along the way. Sky Larks and Lapwings were also displaying and a pair of Common Terns were perched at Kempston Weir.

I crossed the metal bridge over the Back Channel and shortly after I spotted the Otter a a few yards up stream from the island at the south east corner of Box End Park. I cut around the short section of fence and there was JA tucked in by a Willow photographing the Otter directly in front of him, brilliant.

Camera at the ready I joined him and we spent the next 2¾ hours we followed this animal up stream as it fed. We even had a second Otter coming downstream which we followed for a short while before returning back up stream and catching up with the original animal! Amazingly it seemed to be eating almost constantly, I'm surprised it didn't burst! Behaviour was slightly different to my previous encounters. Several times during the encounter the Otter would remain in a particular area for several minutes, often out in the middle of the river, constantly diving, coming up with something, eating it and then diving again. Previously the animals have been constantly on the move, unless they have caught something a little larger in which case they tend to head off into a secluded spot to feed. The river was up a little and the flow was a lot stronger than previously, so this may have been the difference. Perhaps the food was being carried down in the flow so there was no need to move.       

Otter with fish

..and still trying to get it down.

Proof that the American Signal Crayfish is alive and well (not this particular one!) in the next shot. I'm disappointed that I didn't quite nail the shot as it has the potential to be a cracker but I include it here anyway.

Otter with American Signal Crayfish

 At times we were just a few feet from the Otter as it swam past and although it checked us out it didn't seem too bothered by our presence.

What are you looking at!

With it being the closed season for fishing we had all the fishing swims to ourselves so it was a case of move ahead of the Otter, tuck into a fishing swim with some nice cover, wait for the Otter to arrive....

Otter passes by...

..and then do it all over again!

..and again

And finally the light altered providing this lovely golden hue just before the animal disappeared behind the island in Biddenham Loop CP (BLCP).

Our last view.

Mornings don't come much better than that. 

We also had a single Swallow over, BLCP, as we waited for the Otter at one point and Kingfishers were very active around the island after the Otter disappeared. Willow Warblers were also heard in BLCP.

There was another dead Mute Swan (Juvenile) along the Box End Park stretch of the river. This is the second in this area in recent weeks, the previous one being an adult bird. It was across the river on the Box End Park side so I was unable to see any detail, rings etc..

I did a loop around the golf course before heading home. There were more Chiffies, Blackcaps and Willow Warblers along side the golf course and plenty of Sky Lark activity between the golf course and the Mill. A few Lapwings about as well although frustrating to see dog walkers crossing the fields, with their animals, one of whom was right in the area where the Lapwings nest! Come on people stick to the marked paths and keep your dogs close to avoid disturbance to the ground nesting birds. Species such as Sky Lark and Lapwing need all the help they can get.

...and again!

 Another early morning session along the Great Ouse at Kempston with the Otter. Caught up with it at the south east corner of Box End Park and followed it upstream into Biddenham Loop CP. Finally left it munching on something unseen in a reed bed towards the north end of Box End Park.

Otter

..munching on breakfast

Otter (finally some good light)

On the way back home came across this Blackcap singing in the wooded section of the riverside trail between Biddenham Loop and the Back Channel.

Blackcap

There were also a couple of Sedge Warblers singing along the Box End Park side of the river this morning following on from the one I had yesterday in the mill pool at Kempston Mill, and the one I had on Thursday at the mouth of the Back Channel.

Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs quite numerous with small numbers of Willow Warblers also around this morning.

Otter again

I met up with Stephen Plummer this morning, who was back in Bedfordshire for the weekend. I was hoping to show him an Otter on my local stretch of the Great Ouse, but when I found him he was already watching one which he had been following downstream from Great Denham. We were now at the south east corner of Box End Park. We followed the animal downstream until it gave us the slip just upstream from the bypass. The wind got up quite suddenly and made it difficult to pick out ripples made by the Otter so we gave up and headed back up stream. Stephen had been following the animal since about 06:15 and it was around 07:30 when we headed back up stream.

There were more Willow Warblers around this morning with a couple heard along the river near Hillgrounds road in Kempston. I also had a single Swallow over, along the golf course, behind the houses at Carnoustie Drive, Gt. Denham.

Another great morning, if somewhat nippy, and great to meet up with Stephen again.

Box End Park WeBS: 08/04/2012 + Otter

The WeBS count was pretty sparse this morning, highlight being the 2 Common Terns that dropped in briefly around 07:30 before they continued through north. Counts were:

Canada Goose 12  

Coot 1  

Cormorant 8    (1 Sinensis type)

Grey Heron 1  

Kingfisher 1  

Mallard 11  

Moorhen 3  

Mute Swan 11    (include the pair with orange darvic rings 384 and 744)

Oystercatcher 2  

Common Tern 2   

Pied Wagtail 2  

Skylark Present (4 seen together but more on site)  

No Gulls present

Number of species 12

Other birds present included:

Chiffchaff 6

Great Spotted Woodpecker 1 drumming

Blackcap 1

Jay 1 (mimicking Common Buzzard call)

I was lucky enough to find an Otter again on the river. Initially towards the north east end of the park I followed it down river, finally losing it at the island on the river at the south east corner. Managed some nice shots.

Otter

Otter

Otter

Otter

So all in all a pretty good morning. Very impressed with the open water swimmers who were swimming in the lake when I left, especially the ones in just bathing suits rather than wet suits!

Box End Park WeBS: 11/03/2012

A nice early start for this months WeBS at Box End Park. Nothing spectacular on the bird front although nice to see both Oystercatchers now back on site. The sun rise was pretty special, I tried to get a displaying Lapwing in front of the sun (below) but only succeeded with a Carrion Crow.

Sunrise

A Mink was hunting along the edge of the river at the north end of the park.

Mink

The Oystercatchers did a noisy circuit of the park.

Oystercatchers

There were a lot of Mute Swans in the Park today, but I was sad to find a dead adult on the river. I could not see any rings although it was difficult to see for sure with the bird in the water. There are 2 pairs on the river in the area and I suspect this bird may have got caught up in territorial disputes, although it may just have floated down from further upstream with the higher water levels last week after the rain.

Highlight of the morning was a single Otter seen on the river at the south end of the park. This is my first sighting since 20th Feb and back in the same place I saw the mother and 2 cubs on 16th Feb. Sadly the wind direction was coming over my shoulder and straight to the animal and it sussed me immediately and was gone before I could get a shot, better luck next time.

None WeBS birds of interest were drumming Great-spotted Woodpecker, 2 Green Woodpeckers and a singing Goldcrest. WeBS counts were as follows:


Black-headed Gull 72  
Canada Goose 7  
Common Gull 3  
Cormorant 3  
Great Crested Grebe 1  
Grey Wagtail 1  
Kestrel 1  
Kingfisher 2  
Lapwing 4  
Mallard 26  
Meadow Pipit 1  (Flyover).
Moorhen 3  
Mute Swan 11  (2 juveniles)
Oystercatcher 2  
Pied/White Wagtail 1  
Skylark 2  
Total number of species: 16 Individuals: 140

Otter, Biddenham Loop CP 20/02/2012

Managed to track down one of the Otters again this morning. A bit further up stream, into Biddenham Loop CP, from the previous sightings. Had a fun couple of hours playing "cat and mouse" with it before getting into position to snap these two images: 

It's amazing how an animal this size can slip past you unseen, but I got there in the end!

Otters again (19/02/2012)

I caught up with the Otters again this morning after blanking on Friday morning. All 3 were a short distance up stream from where I saw them on Thursday, in the reed beds. I followed them up stream as they hunted but found it really difficult to get any good shots, despite some very close encounters. Eventually one of them caught an Eel and came to the bank within 10 metres from my position. Unfortunately it was behind a tangle of brambles but I managed to get the following shot of it chomping a chunk of Eel. Finally it realised I was there and slipped into the water and across to the other side of the river. I could still hear it munching away but it took a while to pin down the location, well hidden in the reeds. I waited but as usual it finished the meal and slipped away, only given away by the hiss of a Mute Swan further up stream. I hurried up there and found the Swans (744 & 384) nest building and the Otter, by this time, on the opposite side of the river. I followed for a little while longer before being given the slip.

Otter eating chunk of Eel

There was little else of note this morning until I crossed the golf course, heading back towards the Mill. A small party of Canada Geese flew over (NE), looking stunning against the clear blue sky.

Canada Geese

Having crossed the golf course I came across a mixed flock of Linnets, Goldfinches, Meadow Pipits and Skylarks. The Skylarks were singing well and a couple of Meadow Pipits perched up on the fence obligingly.

Meadow Pipit

Meadow Pipit

 A little further along the trail and I came across a flock of Fieldfares (70+) in the fields between the Mill and Gt. Denham. Singing Skylarks were all around, a wonderful sound. Spring is truly in the air!

Gt. Ouse Otters (Kempston Mill)

I was on the look out for Otters again this morning after last week sighting. The first signs were some ripples at the south end of the island, in the river, just upstream from the church. While trying to identify the cause I spotted something further upstream, out of the corner of my eye, and the binoculars revealed an Otter coming down stream with a large fish in its mouth. This Otter disappeared behind the island so I returned my attention to the ripples and eventually a nose was spotted through the tangle of branches and a second Otter was confirmed. Next thing I knew the Otter with the fish joined the first and proceeded to munch on its prize. The other Otter had come across to my side of the river by this time and suddenly it was swimming past within a few feet of me. I hardly dared breath in case it spotted me, but fortunately it continued by and started hunting close in to the bank but out of sight, just the ripples and bubbles giving away its position.

I finally managed to get in a position to photograph the Otter eating the fish, a Bream I think. It was difficult to get any good shots with the low light and tangle of branches but here we go:  

After a while the second Otter joined the first at the fish and then a third Otter turned up! This was getting better and better. I just managed to get the three in frame together:

I was really hoping they might come out and play in the river after they finished their breakfast but sadly no, a couple of them moved into the reed bed on the opposite side of the river where I managed the best shot of the morning:

After that the activity died down and they just melted away. How do they do that?

What a morning and to top it off an Oystercatcher flew over, heading downstream, as I headed home along the back channel. Hopefully one of the Box End Park birds back for the breeding season.

More from Shetland (June 2009)

Some more pictures from our Shetland trip last June:


The final couple of nights at Sumburgh produced superb sunsets.


The Jarlshof ruin provided foreground interest for this sunset shot.


This Otter made an appearance while we waited for the ferry at Yell. Nearly missed the ferry while trying to get this shot!


A very pleasing shot of an Arctic Tern in flight.

Shetland 2009

Just back from Shetland where we had a great time. The weather was very kind to us and, our hosts, Shetland Wildlife, were brilliant. There are loads of photo's to come but following are the first few hot off the press:

This Red-throated Diver was one of a pair at the RSPB reserve at Funzie Ness on Fetlar. Having gone there to see the Red-necked Phalarope (more on that later) we were lucky to get very close views of this bird, one of a pair. A second pair were holding ground in the middle of the lake forcing this bird and its mate close to the shore.

Why did the Otter cross the road? To get to the other side of course! I spotted this chap fishing while out early, checking the shoreline, at Baltasound on Unst. After a while it started heading up the beach before moving up onto the road, crossing over, and entering a derelict building on the opposite side. I followed it in and ended up looking at it looking at me from only 7 feet away. A fantastic moment I won't forget for a long time.