A new home for otters

On the 2nd July 2007, Cardiff University came for their 5th work session in Nelson Wern. The project this time was to build a home for otters, or a holt. John Bell from Keep Wales Tidy and Dave Beveridge from CCBC Parks Services have found evidence that otters are using the site and had found a suitable place to build a holt.

An existing hole was enlarged, then had the walls strengthened.

Sturdy branches are the placed on top of the structure as a roof, leaving two entrances for the otters.

Nicola and Rob applying the finishing touches of leafy branches to hide the holt.

Once completed it is almost invisible.

There is no guarantee that otters will ever use the holt, but if they don’t, something else will. They make very good habitat piles and are sources of food for many birds, such as Thrushes and Wrens, providing nesting sites for them too. The materials come from an area to be cleared as a forest glade, so were growing on site. Where the trees were cut the sunlight can now reach the forest floor. This will allow plants to bloom, where the dense canopy had suppressed them. Every step of the process has benefited nature and the Wern.