VIDEOS: Otter at spawning ground

Submitted by Looduskalender EN on Wed, 22.11.2017 - 11:55
Autorid

Video clips recorded by Aita, LK forum
Translation Liis

Estonian text posted 20.11.2017

Body

 

 

Only a brief moment of otter in camera view

 

Otter      Harilik saarmas           Lutra lutra

 

We have suspected otter activity at the spawning ground for some weeks already. Judging from the sounds the otter attacks could be guessed to be downstream from the camera, the day before yesterday however rather slightly upstream. In the night the creature itself was finally caught on camera.

Why only talk about the robber in singular? Otters generally operate individually: they are very mobile and even researchers have difficulties in tracking them.

Around the spawning camera the otter, with excellent hearing, sight and sense of smell operates at night; due to this we also see the spawners more rarely at night and a visible nervousness is apparent in their behaviour. But an otter does not operate for long in the same hunting territory. It returns after some time when the trout at the redd have calmed down (however, this is no rule).

Windy weather that increases the rippling of the water surface allows the otter to hide more successfully on attacking the trout that have lost their caution at the spawning.

We will soon introduce the otter more in detail and discuss its life in autumn and winter:.

In the video from last year there is a slightly longer record of the otter hunting the spawners.

 

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