2016 Dead Otters – summary.
17 dead otters were recorded across the county.
15, 88% were recovered for autopsy and forwarded to Cardiff University.
8 otters believed to be involved Road Traffic Collision, 9 otters non Road Traffic involvement.
Catchment Breakdown; Exe-1, Coastal Streams-1, Tone-2, Parrett-6, Brue-5, Avon Frome-2.
Comments;
17 is a very low number of deaths recorded. Even more extraordinary is that a low 8 were as a result of road collisions. A very high 9 non road deaths has also never been recorded, the usual being 2 annual non road deaths.
2016 is certainly a year of note, the 2 day event reflecting a change with a very high 25 Blank Patches, the norm having been about 8. That is areas surveyed and found completely devoid of all otter signs, and this in a year where a long dry spell before the survey would have meant older spraints would be detected.
In past years like 2006 and 2011 the poor survey results were accompanied by high mortality records but 2016 has been accompanied by unusually low mortality records.