Welcome Back Otter

Early one morning last week I noticed something splashing around in Ann Lee Pond. What the hell is that? I pulled the car over.

A short distance from shore a pair of sleek, dark animals darted around on the water, diving and surfacing like tiny seals. Otters.

I’d never seen an otter before, but it was obvious what they were. Naturally, I didn’t have a camera, but every morning and afternoon since then, I’ve stopped by the pond hoping to see them again and get a picture. Nothing.

Oddly appropriate that on Earth Day one of the otters made a return appearance, gliding along obliviously as I snapped away. I’ll admit, part of me just wanted an excuse to use the headline above, but the truth is that I find even the most ordinary animals sort of amazing.

All before 7:30 this morning I spotted a dozen turkeys, several deer, birds of all sorts, the otter, a large turtle — and several anglers out in their boats trolling on the Hudson. Every day is Earth Day if you just look around.

9 thoughts on “Welcome Back Otter

  1. Rob,
    Not that I don’t believe you COMPLETELY, but I sent our blog post to Joseph Cea for a second opinion on otter identification.

  2. We’ve had a male turkey in our back yard for 3 days now and earlier he was joined by 3 female deer. Happy Earth Day!

  3. Rob:
    Please don’t take this the wrong way but your pic looks more like a beaver than an otter which as you mention in the article are darker in color than the rich brown color of beavers plus beavers have more triangular ears than the rounded ones for otters. Also, check out this link to DEC’s webpage about the otter relocation program. Trappers were directly responsible for the repopulation where habitat destruction caused their disappearance.

    http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/9355.html

    and

    http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/9368.html

    There aren’t that many otters in the capital region so its good to see a few around here. I’ve trapped a few and seen a few here and there but like you never had my camera ready.

  4. Hmmm… that could be on account of the lighting. Or I took a picture of the wrong critter.

    There are no beaver lodges near where I was; would that make a difference?

    Back to the pond tomorrow morning!

  5. Rob:
    The lighting could be the issue. Some beavers are known as “bank beavers” and carve out dens in the banks of creeks instead of the traditional lodge. They have the reputation of being more difficult to trap for some reason.

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