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Suffolk Coast Otter Project

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Suffolk Coast Otter Project Suffolk Coast Otter Project Report June 2014 to March 2016 on work in progress This project has been part funded by the Amenity and Accessibility Fund of the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB. 1 Table of Contents Suffolk Coast Otter Project ............................................................................................................ 4 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 4 2. The Study Areas. ............................................................................................................................. 4 3. Diet ................................................................................................................................................. 5 a. Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 5 b. Methodology .............................................................................................................................. 5 c. Results from the Minsmere Study Site ....................................................................................... 5 d. Results Alde/Ore Study Site ........................................................................................................ 9 4. Spraint Deposition. ....................................................................................................................... 10 a. Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 10 b. Minsmere. ................................................................................................................................ 10 c. Alde/Ore. .................................................................................................................................. 10 5. Activity Patterns. .......................................................................................................................... 11 a. Previously Published Studies. ................................................................................................... 11 b. Trail Cameras. ........................................................................................................................... 12 c. Results. ..................................................................................................................................... 12 6. Productivity and Population Estimates ........................................................................................ 14 a. Minsmere - Island Mere ........................................................................................................... 14 b. Minsmere North Marsh. ........................................................................................................... 16 e. The Alde/Ore. ........................................................................................................................... 17 7. Footprint Study. ............................................................................................................................ 17 8. Behavioural Observations ............................................................................................................ 18 9. Recommendations for Future Action ........................................................................................... 20 10. Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................. 20 11. References ................................................................................................................................ 20 2 Summary This Report covers work undertaken by the Suffolk Coast Otter Project at the RSPB Minsmere Reserve and on the Alde/Ore Estuary between June 2014 and March 2016. Spraint analysis results of over 550 spraints are given for the two sites. Analysis covers species present with no relative quantities in individual spraint. No attempt is made to assess the importance in the overall diet of the species present. There is no evidence that the Minsmere otters are using the sea for food. On the Alde/Ore a significant proportion of the prey is obtained from the estuary. At Minsmere the fish species appearing in the spraint are the same species as identified from the electro-fishing. Significant amounts of very small fish appear in the spraint with 50% of spraints from Minsmere containing stickleback and on the Alde/Ore over 70% contain stickleback and over 50% containing goby. At Minsmere proportions of bird, water beetle, shrimp and eel increase in the spraint in the summer. Otters are frequently seen during the day at Minsmere and the camera results show they are active at any time of the day or night. On the Alde/Ore there are very few daytime sightings and the cameras show a far more nocturnal habit. At Minsmere during the study period there seem to have been a minimum of three females producing seven sets of cubs. There is some evidence of cub loss soon after they appear with one family of three cubs being reduced to one cub within a fortnight of first appearing. On the Alde/Ore we get far less camera contact with both otter families and individuals. A study of footprints in an attempt to identify individual otters is underway in conjunction with an American organization – WildTrack. A number of behavioural observations have been observed and described. Recommendations are made for future action. 3 Suffolk Coast Otter Project 1. Introduction Otter monitoring over recent years has concentrated on recording the presence or absence of otters by checking for spraint. This successfully recorded the return of the otter after the near extinction caused in the 1960s and 70s by pollution from agricultural pesticides. However, this provided no information on numbers, breeding success, diet or how they used the habitats they occupied. The Suffolk Coast Otter Project was established to investigate techniques that might shed light on some or all of these areas. Initially the Project had two main areas of work: - Spraint analysis – the collection and analysis of spraint to gather information on diet and habitat utilisation. Trail cameras – Using carefully positioned trail cameras to monitor passing otters. A third area of work was to disseminate any knowledge gained from this project both in Suffolk and further afield. This paper looks at what has been achieved so far and provides a basis for making decisions about future work. Any thoughts or comments gratefully received. 2. The Study Areas. Minsmere is an RSPB nature reserve of some 1000 hectares on the Suffolk coast. The reserve includes over 200 hectares of reed bed, water bodies and interconnecting ditches which are home to such reedbed specialities as bittern; bearded tit and marsh harrier. Considerable effort has been put into boosting the habitat for bitterns with the manipulation of water levels and the creation of ideal conditions for populations of fish. Bittern numbers have grown from a single booming male in 1991 to well into double figures in the summer of 2015. Conditions at Minsmere seem ideal for otters, with daytime sightings proving extremely popular with the 1000s of visitors that flock to the reserve. The Alde/Ore Estuary. The estuary stretches 28km. from Snape Bridge to the sea at Shingle Street. There are extensive areas of embanked freshwater grazing marsh and in the upper reaches there are extensive mud flats. On this estuary we have several regular sites for the collection of spraint samples and sites where we have trail cameras. Together these sites include saline conditions in the estuary itself, extensive mudflat and saltmarsh and on the other side of the river wall freshwater grazing marsh with intersecting ditches. The sites are: Stanny House Farm, Iken, (private owner); Orford Ness, (National Trust); Boyton and Hollesley Marshes, (RSPB); and Snape Marshes (RSPB). A group has recently been established and has started work on the River Blyth and a group for the River Deben is planned for this Autumn. 4 3. Diet a. Introduction Finding out what otters eat by analysing their droppings (spraint) has been used by various researchers in different parts of the otter’s geographical range. It is not a perfect tool in that large prey, eaten by biting off chunks of flesh, may leave few remains in the spraint whereas small prey such as sticklebacks, which are eaten whole, may be exaggerated. It does not therefore allow for the relative importance of species to the overall diet to be calculated but the frequency of occurrence of different species can give an important insight into how the otter is using its range. b. Methodology Spraint collection is carried out on a regular basis usually fortnightly. Spraints are collected separately in small plastic pots, soaked in a solution of biological washing powder for at least 24 hours, gently washed through a sieve, then laid out on paper and either air dried or dried in an electric herb drier. They are examined under a microscope and any species identified are recorded on an Excel spreadsheet. For each spraint we record all species identified, but not quantity. For example, a spraint that was predominantly stickleback bones, with 3 perch scales and 2 bird feathers, would be recorded as containing stickleback, perch and bird, with no indication of the relative quantities. Most birds have not been identified
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