Yesterday afternoon was fine, if a bit misty, but there was no wind as such so I thought it would be a good time to pop down to SWT Castle marshes at North Cove to try and photograph the Barn Owls that have been frequenting the area recently. I walked along the river wall for a little way but saw no sign of any owls but spent some time watching a herd of Highland cattle on a marsh which included a few calves that looked very cute. Returning to the area that I knew an owl had been roosting recently I sat on the wall and waited hoping for an owl to appear but after 15 minutes or so a small movement in my peripheral vision caused me to slowly turn and I saw an Otter moving along the reeds on the far bank. Carefully positioning myself behind the camera I spotted 2 other otters and realised it was a female with her 2 well grown cubs.
Recently there have been reports of a female with 2 cubs upstream as far as Beccles Sailing club so it is likely that these were the same animals as they roam over a large territory. The cubs were playing in amongst the reeds as they slowly made their way upstream but I managed a few shots in the rapidly disappearing light. I did try to follow them to take more pictures but they became aware of me and disappeared under the water so I left the river to them and returned to the car. I never did see an owl but a few plops from the dykes as I walked along could indicate the presence of Water voles so that might be worth further investigation in the future.
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