BBC Wildlife - UK (2021-12)

74 BBC WILDLIFE December 2021

continue to pose a risk. These toxins, which

caused otter populations to crash, are known

as Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs),

and as the name suggests, will persist in the

environment long after they were banned

from the marketplace. They’re also still

leaching into the water from landfill sites.

While still affected by an earlier era

of pollutants, otters now face another

invisible and insidious threat. A group

of chemicals known as PFAS (Per- and

polyfluoroalkyl substances) is widely used

as flame-retardants and water repellents.

PFAs are also persistent, accumulate in the

food chain and are known to disrupt the

normal workings of hormones in animals and

humans. A 2021 study detecting PFAS in top

predators such as common buzzards, seals

and harbour porpoises found the highest

concentrations in otters.

OOTTERS

1 

Now that otters have recolonised almost

every river in the UK, it makes sense to

concentrate on looking for them close to

home, so you can enjoy repeated access and

visit at different times of day. Begin by making

sure you use a pair of binoculars. Those in the

8x42 range perform best in marginal lighting.

2 

Camouflaged clothing is not essential,

but drab colours, such as dark browns

and greens, are ideal. It’s also worth

wearing gloves and face veils to cover pale skin.

Appreciating an otter’s acute senses of smell and

hearing is much more important however, so wear

rustle-free clothing and stay downwind or above

their noses – bridges make ideal vantage points.

3 

Mirrorless cameras, which can be

operated silently, offer a huge advantage

when working with any mammal at close

quarters. But check the camera’s ability to

perform well at high ISO settings for when

you’re shooting close to either end of the day.

4 

Lens choice is always a compromise.

Long, fixed focal length telephotos of

400mm or above with large apertures

are expensive and heavy, but are perfect for

situations where otters appear regularly in

the same location. Telephoto zoom lenses in

the 200-500mm range are more versatile,

particularly if they offer image-stabilisation, so

are good for stalking otters.

5 

It can be difficult to keep up with otters

on rivers, so make a detour to get ahead

of them and find a concealed position to

wait as they come towards you. Do everything

you can to reduce the silhouette of your outline

by keeping below skylines and making use of

natural features in the landscape such

as trees, walls and hedgerows.

6 

The best opportunity to get

close to otters is when

they catch large items

of prey that they can’t deal

with in the water and need to

bring ashore (right). They may

feed for quite long periods, so

never rush and always stage

your approach while constantly

monitoring the animals’ reactions

as you get closer to them.

Laurie Campbell’s tips for photographing otters

Monitoring is vital

to understand current

contamination levels and

predict future problems,

but at a time of rising alarm

about the state of our rivers,

budgets are being cut for

monitoring work. There are also

vital questions about what we monitor.

In 2019, the Environment Agency increased

the number of chemical pollutants assessed,

which meant that the number of rivers, lakes

and waterways in England deemed to have

‘good chemical status’ fell from 97 per cent

to zero. And many new chemicals already in

use are still not being measured.

Historically, there were fewer chemicals

but in high concentrations; currently,

we have lower concentrations but many

more chemicals. Some are more toxic in

combination and it’s not yet understood

Two juvenile otter siblings

pause on the riverbank with

their mother nearby

Positioning yourself

downwind of otters

increases the chances

of them being unaware

of your presence