Otter sightings at St Asaph river

A water loving animal has been tracked down at one of Denbighshire’s Rivers.

Our Biodiversity team has launched a series of surveys to find out how Otters are faring across the county.

Otters are a protected species in the UK and a priority for support in Denbighshire. They are known to like water systems like rivers, ditches, streams, ponds, and even estuaries and coastal areas.

The animals are known to hunt prey underwater, and their diet primarily consists of fish.

Surveying the Afon Elwy near St Asaph, on land owned by farmer Samantha Kendrick, the Biodiversity Team has now found signs of Otter life alongside its banks.

Senior Biodiversity Officer Liam Blazey explained: “We found signs, spraints and footprints) of otter using this section of the Afon Elwy which was really positive.

“The data and findings we gather as a team will be added to the national Otter Survey and we will be carrying on with this work to find the animal across a number of other county sites to get a picture of how it is faring in Denbighshire.”

In the coming months the Biodiversity Team will link up with their equivalents over in Flintshire County Council to undertake more Otter surveys together to get an idea of how the animal populations are using waterways across both counties.