Winter 2010 O Hello and welcome to the Winter 2010 Otter Spotters newsletter. Thank you to all Otter Spotters for continuing to do your quarterly survey and send in your recording forms. Jonathan and Michael, our two office volunteers have been keeping our RECORDER database up to date and your data continues to be useful to DBRC for providing information on the whereabouts of otters in Devon We appreciate that being an otter spotter can sometimes be a solitary activity so we have organised a meeting/training day in February 2011 in Exeter to which otter spotters are invited. It is an opportunity to meet fellow otter spotters, have lunch, chat to us and see what we do with your records. Further details are included this newsletter. Some of you took part in the Exeter otter survey earlier this year and we have included the results of this survey in this newsletter for you to see. This was a repeat survey from 10 years ago and it is encouraging that Exeter s waterway s continue to be well used by otters. We are lucky in Exeter to have areas like the River Exe and the valley parks which are valuable habitat for wildlife and a great resource for us townies to get our wildlife-fix! Bridge over Exeter canal where otter spraint is regularly found Surveying at this time of year can be a cold and wet experience and sometimes rivers can be high. I have therefore included some information about health and safety in with this newsletter, as a reminder of things to consider when otter surveying. I hope you have a nice festive season and I look forward to meeting some of you in Exeter in February if you can make it. Best Wishes Caroline Caroline Jones Devon Biodiversity Records Centre cjones@devonwildlifetrust.org 01392 274128 DBRC 27 Commercial Road, Exeter. EX2 4AE. Tel. 01392 274128 Email: dbrc@devonwildlifetrust.org Web site: www.devonwildlifetrust.org Registered charity, no 213224
Otter spotters meeting/volunteer training day We would like to invite otter spotters to come along to a meeting/training day on Sat 5 th February at the X-centre on Exeter quay. It is an opportunity for otter spotters to meet each other, meet us and learn a bit more about what we do with the results you send into us every quarter. Some of you have been surveying for over 10 years now and as thanks we would like to invite you to this meeting where we will provide a free lunch! We also have some new volunteers who want to learn how to survey for otters so the day will also be for them to learn more about otters and otter surveying. We have been lucky to be awarded a small grant for the meeting/training day from The NBN trust to pay for the day. The day will consist of a morning session in the X-centre where Ellie Knott from DBRC and the Devon Mammal Group will give a presentation about otters and otter ecology followed by information about the current distribution of otters in Devon and what we do with the results. There will also be an opportunity to have a look at our mapping system to see how we manage your records and meet other otter spotters. There will be examples of footprints, spraints and other information on otters for people to look at. In the afternoon, we will go to some different spots along the Exeter canal to look for otter spraint. This will primarily be for new surveyors but also for current surveyors who might want a refresher. If you would like to come to the meeting/training day, please give me a ring to book your place. We have room for 50 people at the presentation but we are limited with the field trip to 20 places, so please book early to avoid disappointment. I look forward to meeting some of you there. Caroline Come and meet Ellie and Caroline from DBRC at the otter spotters meeting/ training day in February! Quarterly survey form now available on website The quarterly survey form is now available to download from our website www.dbrc.org.uk/ If you would like to download your form instead of having one sent to you in the post, please let me know and I will arrange for your details to be changed on our database. Furthermore, if you still have your information sent in the post and would like to switch to e-mail, please give me a call or e-mail. It all helps with saving paper!
Health and safety when otter surveying If you are an otter spotter you will find some information about health and safety included in with this newsletter. Please have a read through the information to remind yourselves about health and safety on the riverbank. Results of Exeter Otter survey In February of this year, Devon mammal group and Ambios ( Nature at Sundown ) organised an otter survey of Exeter. The survey was carried out by volunteers and aimed to record the distribution of otters within the Exeter city boundary. It was a repeat of a survey that took place 10 years ago. The results of the survey came to DBRC and we put the information into our biological database (RECORDER) and mapped the results onto GIS, our computer mapping system.thank you to Jonathan for your help with data input. In both surveys, signs of otters were well recorded along the River Exe and Alphinbrook showing these watercourses are well used by otters. This is further confirmed by the many records we hold at DBRC for otters in these areas. (See 2010 map.) It is encouraging that in the last ten years otters have continued to use these waterways throughout the city. Signs of otter were also found on some of the smaller tributaries of the Exe - the top of the Northbrook in 2009 and 1999 and at Seabrook house stream in 2010. We had a record in this year of an otter further down the Northbrook suggesting that otters also use the lower Northbrook. Both surveys and our records show an absence of otters on some of the other brooks to the North East of the city. In some of these areas we think this may be due to the presence of culverts and busy roads making it difficult for otters travel between waterways. The information gained from the Exeter otter survey will be used by Exeter City Council to help manage wildlife habitats throughout the valley parks. This is an excellent example of how a community participation survey can really make a difference to conservation of wildlife habitats.
Cricklepit mill otter update Otter Spotters Thank you to Devon Wildlife Trust and Viridor for use of this photo. One of Exeter s otters we definitely know about is the otter that visits Cricklepit Mill, the Devon Wildlife Trust headquarters down on Exeter quay. Recently a hydro-turbine was installed at the mill and since work has finished on this, the otter has been back visiting the mill again. The otter has been captured several times on film since work on the hydroturbine has finished and it seems the otter likes to play in the plunge-pool where the water runs out from the turbine into the leat. John McCaulay, the caretaker and an otter spotter was lucky enough to see the otter one morning when opening up the mill. If you would like to see footage of the cricklepit mill otter, you can see it on screen in reception at the mill. They also have plaster casts of the footprints there to look at. Cricklepit Mill is open to the public each weekday between 9am and 5pm. Entry is free. Otters seen at Halsdon nature reserve Recently there have been a number of sightings of otters at Halsdon nature reserve, one of Devon Wildlife Trust s nature reserves. The place to spot them is the bird hide at lunchtimes!! They have been spotted from various people who have been having their lunch in the hide including Ian Chadwick, the reserve officer who saw a mother and two cubs. He watched them for about 30 minutes before they swam off. If you would like to see footage of this, you can see a video on the Devon Wildlife Trust homepage www.devonwildlifetrust.org
Wildlife themed Christmas gifts/cards If like me you get stuck of thinking of original gift ideas for family and friends at Christmas, why not consider supporting the work of Devon Wildlife Trust and buying a gift of Devon Wildlife Trust membership? Individual membership is 24 whilst family membership is 30. You can also buy Christmas cards online www.devonwildlifetrust.org or at DWT reception at Cricklepit Mill. For grandchildren, nephews and nieces why not adopt a species! For 20 you can adopt a species including an OTTER! Adopters receive a certificate, factsheet, postcard and for children, a fun activity book and colouring pencil set. I am sure you will agree that our friends at Devon Wildlife Trust do excellent work managing Devon s nature reserves and are involved with many projects working towards nature conservation and wildlife education in Devon. Help needed monitoring mink in East and Mid-Devon Mervyn Newman, Water Vole Project Officer for the Devon Water Vole Recovery project needs some help monitoring mink in East Devon and along the Grand Western Canal in Mid Devon. Water voles have been re-introduced into East Devon, and mink control is being done for water vole conservation as they do not co-exist. Mink are monitored using mink rafts, which consist of a floating raft with a tunnel on the top. Inside the tunnel is a tray of clay and sand, with a layer of Oasis foam at the base (this keeps the clay and sand damp). The rafts are moored at the edge of the river, and the mink will go through the tunnel, leaving nice clear footprints. The tunnel can be left open, or it can be modified to include a trap. More information can be found on the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust website http://www.gwct.org.uk/documents/gct_mink_raft_guidelineslr.pdf There are various volunteer tasks that need doing including: looking for and reporting on tracks and signs found; weekly or fortnightly checks of mink rafts; placing traps out for mink and checking on these on the following days. Water vole Mervyn has been doing this work for 4 and a half years but his post is coming to an end in February and he needs some volunteer help to enable the project to continue. This would be an excellent opportunity for a student looking for a project to do. Training will be provided by Mervyn. If you are interested in this project, please contact Mervyn on (01395) 516551 or e-mail him on MNewman@eastdevon.gov.uk We have moved!!!! Lastly, just to let you know that DBRC has moved. We are now based down at the quay next to Devon Wildlife Trust headquarters. This will be much easier for us for sharing resources such as IT and pool cars. Our new address is 27 Commercial Road, Exeter, EX2 4AE.