FOR many years, otters have been absent from Notts but, thanks to hard work by the county's wildlife trust, things are changing.
Cleaner water and more inviting habitats have seen the return of the creatures and in 2010, local naturalist and photographer Alan Knightly provided the evidence everyone had been waiting for – a picture of an otter swimming in the ponds at Attenborough Nature Reserve.
His image was believed to be the first picture taken of an otter in the county since the late 1970s or early 1980s.
Back in the early 1950s, the picture would not have seemed an achievement of any kind.
At the time, otters were widespread across the country. However, by the end of the decade, numbers had declined dramatically. A combination of harmful pesticides, poor water quality and pollution had decimated wildlife populations in our waterways.
By the late 1970s, otters were almost extinct in England, with only a few strongholds in Scotland and Wales.
As the death of our waterways became more apparent, new legislation came into effect, aiding the otter's wellbeing. Otter-hunting was outlawed in 1978 and hydrocarbon pesticides were phased out of use. Eventually, otters began to make a gradual comeback.
Lobbying and habitat creation by environmental groups, changes in legislation and massive investment by companies such as Severn Trent has given otters a fighting chance in Notts, too.
Our Otters and Rivers Project officer first found evidence of otter activity at both Attenborough Nature Reserve and Newark over a decade ago. Since then, we have been tracking footprints and droppings to try to build up a picture of otters in the county. And over the decade, we have worked to create the right habitats.
Within the first few months, the wildlife trust has created its first artificial otter holt (den) at a secret location in the Mansfield area. It was constructed using materials such as breeze blocks and drainage pipes and was designed to provide shelter and privacy for otters moving into the area.
Following this success, the trust launched its Otter Taskforce, working with volunteers to carry out habitat creation work such as tree planting and fencing and to create holts alongside many rivers.
This work has yielded evidence of otters but sightings remained few and far between. For many years, our officer tracked the creatures without ever seeing one. However, our Otter Spotter training course did lead to the occasional report of sightings from the public.
In 2008, we constructed a holt at Attenborough Nature Reserve. A few false alarms of otter sightings raised our hopes but these turned out to be non-native mink. In the summer of 2010, we had our first verified sightings.
Volunteers are vital to our efforts to protect and enhance otter-friendly habitats across the county. We also run a number of great schemes including Adopt a Species. By adopting a species, with a small donation, you can directly support the return of the otter by helping to fund conservation work.
Our Wildlife in the Wetlands project, which is supported by Nottingham-based Speedo International Ltd, also promotes opportunities to both conserve and enjoy wetland reserves.
For more details of how you can support the work of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust by becoming a member or volunteer, visit www.nottinghamshirewildlife.org
This article first appeared in Notts Today.
Have you spotted an otter in Notts? Send us a picture to picturedesk@nottinghampostgroup.co.uk
