Today, much loved and valued, the European otter has survived hundreds of years of hunting and trapping.  When we moved to Little Paxton in 1968 there were still active hunting packs of men and dogs operating in parts of Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.  The hunt was seemingly a great local social occasion and ejoyed by the local villagers.  It was not until as late as 1982 that the otter was fully protected in law.  Scotland was the last area to ban otter hunting.  However, the animal is still disliked by some human fishermen - I wonder why?

Let's set the records straight about which otter breeds in Britain and Europe, it is just one species and we have found them recently well above the Arctic Circle.  So, despite what people may think, we do not have sea otters anywhere in Britain or Europe.  The species which breeds in the Ouse Valley also can be found in every English County, the Scottish West Coast and Islands, but especially north to Shetland.  Here, recent estimates suggest that these islands may be home to over one thousand otters!

The sea otter only occurs along the west coast of Canada and the USA, where they were almost wiped out by the fur trade.  Since protection they have also made a remarkable comeback - which is good news indeed!

My wife Veronica now writes about her personal experiences with otters at Paxton Pits:

'When an otter first made an appearance during an Open Day there was great excitement!  This animal seemed remarkably confident and afforded our many visitors their first view of a wild otter.  On another occasion I was privileged to witness an amazing interaction between an otter and a fox.  Sitting alone in Kingfisher Hide, I watched the fox trotting above the edge of the water, and the otter (which had been fishing nearby) swam towards it.  The two animals came quite close to each other before the fox turned and ran up the bank, chased by the otter.  Eventually the otter returned to the water with, eventually, the fox standing and watching from the waters edge.  This was an amazing interaction between two wild animals and what a shame that this experience could not have been shared with others'

Since these early days we have travelled far and wide looking for these very remarkable animals - from Shetland to the outer isles and Arran.  All have provided wonderful wildlife experiences and sometimes a great deal of frustration.

However, you need not travel far these days with lots of sightings around Paxton Pits and I have even heard about otters being seen along the river and even from St Neots Bridge.

So, good luck and let's celebrate the return of the otter - and all other local wildlife in these challenging times!