September 2017
Your best interests are my top priority. Paul Cleary B.B.A.
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Magical canoe trip through Black River Wildlands By Ron Reid On a recent canoe sojourn through the Black River Wildlands, we were brought to a quick halt by the sighting of three River Otters just ahead. Typically, they showed a mixture of curiosity and caution, popping up for a look in an action called “periscoping”. As we drifted closer, we could hear them chuffing and even emitting a low moan a lot like a distant cow. After a few minutes of this, when the current had taken us a little downstream, they popped up near the shore and scrambled up under a tree root into a hidden burrow. You would have to be hard-hearted indeed not to like otters. They are sleek and streamlined and completely at home swimming underwater. Unlike most other members of the weasel family, otters seem to have little fear of humans. Most of all, they are perhaps the most playful of wild creatures. Years ago, we watched a brood of four young otters clamouring onto a floating log. But the log only had enough buoyancy for three, so it would sink and spill off everyone. Back they came, again and again, with a playful joy that was impossible to miss.
The most playful of wild creatures, River Otters were spotted on a recent canoe trip on the Black River. Photo by Deb Halbot, Through My Eyes – Photography. Otters are built for the water – not just their shape, but other adaptations as well. Their nostrils and ears close while they are underwater, and their eyes have special clear membranes to allow them to see underwater. Their feet are webbed to provide propulsion, and their heavy streamlined tails provide stability and steering. Whiskers on the side of their face help them to locate fish for their diet, and strong molars can crush crayfish and mussels. Couchiching Conservancy Black River Wildlands Fundraiser Events – see page 26, September 10 & 17 – Otters stay in their home habitats yearround. They travel widely, typically covering 4 to 5 km each day along the waterways and wetlands of their territory. In winter, their travels lessen, since they depend on
cracks of open water to provide access to food. The cold season may be the easiest time to see otters, since they become more active during daylight hours. Diving under the ice might seem like a chilly exercise, but otters have a thick coat of fine hairs to provide insulation – the back of a male otter has been documented to have over 370,000 hairs per square inch! Since otters are near the top of the aquatic food chain, they are vulnerable to any pollutants that have built up in their prey. That makes them excellent indicators of water quality. The presence of a healthy population of River Otters in the Black River Wildlands property is a reassuring sign that the river waters and the aquatic ecosystem are healthy too. The purchase of this property by the Couchiching Conservancy, with your support, will help to ensure that it remains great habitat for otters and dozens of other wildlife species for many years to come.
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Paul Lavigne 705-330-4550 plavigne@orillia.mazda.ca
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Mark Scott 705-345-1989 markscott@bell.net