The 26th day of the tenth month of the year of the Camellia

Finally!

I have been trying to find the river otters that everyone else on the River Walk have seen for the past two years.  This morning there was a considerable fog, lousy light, and out one of them pops about 7:45 AM.

These are not good photos, but under the circumstances I wanted everyone to know that I really am not certifiable.  They are there!  The fog lay heavy enough that rock surfaces were damp and slippery to the foot.  Temperatures were cool and the whole scene felt as though we were deep in an Oregon rain forest.  But in reality only a mile from busy downtown Columbia and the state capital.

This will give you an idea of the habitat with him on the right.

  He was actually headed down river in this shot, but had taken a rest on that boulder.  I think he is a first or second year animal, because the otters in the images I took some years ago on Assateague Island, were almost two to three times larger. 

I first noticed him about 30 yards off shore on this rock which was to my right and down river.

I again apologize for the quality of these images, but it was early, in fog, and all I  had was the 200 mm lens.  If you click or double click on each photo, they will enlarge and become a bit clearer.  He hung out on that rock for three or four minutes while I worked my way closer to the shore, but still some 40 yards above him.

He worked up the river to within about ten yards of me, which apparently was too close and he moved on up from that point and crossed the river.  He did catch a half dozen small fish on his brief travels past me and it was cool to watch him fish. 

Now that I have a handle on a possible path for him to follow, my next chore will be finding his den or at least temporary den.  Last year, there were reportedly five of them in a family setting.  My guess is that this is one of the youngsters.  Be assured I will try to get better images, so stay tuned.

This is the Assateague Island pair, under much better conditions.