Three orphaned otters released into the wild
THREE orphaned otters have been released into the wild after more than nine months in care.
Stream, Eddie and Smoult were taken to the National Wildlife Rescue Centre in Fishcross, Clackmannanshire, when they were cubs between eight and ten weeks old.
After months of rehabilitation, the Scottish SPCA has set the trio free in a freshwater loch at a secret location in the Highlands.
Centre manager Colin Seddon said: “There are many factors that need to be met before we can release otters back into the wild – the weather, site location, otter population in the area and landowners’ permission. All of these must be in place to ensure the best chance of survival.
“With help from the Woodland Trust we were able to access the remote release site in the Highlands in order to successfully release the otters.
“Without their help we would not have been able to access this site.”
Support feeding and shelter have been provided for the trio and they will be monitored using camera traps.
This method was successfully used last year, at a release on Mull, where those who were released are still doing well several months later.
Otters were driven to near-extinction throughout the UK between the 1950s and 1970s. However, due to improvements in water quality and legal protection they can be seen once again in Scotland and other parts of the UK.