Early on this morning, a trail camera caught some excellent footage of an otter rolling around in the grass a short distance away from the River Bollin.

Otters have been pushed to the brink of almost exitinction by hunting, habitat destruction and pesticides.  The otter almost disappeared from rivers and waterways in England, and survied in very small numbers in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.  So, catching even a brief glimpse of an otter is very rewarding, but this wonderfully clear video footage is just incredible, and tells us a lot about how wildlife in the Bollin Catchment is faring.  Otters are top predators that use both terrestrial and aquatic environments and their decline has had a serious impact on local food webs, biodiversity and habitat relationships. They are considered an indicator species, and their presence is a hopeful sign of improving river conditions.

Follwing great efforts through partnership working, and help from landowners and volunteers to improve water quality throughout the Bollin catchment, we can see here the otter is making a very welcome comeback!

You can see the full video here