Friday August 5, 2011
This is, for me, one of those Holy Cow! sightings. I wanted to catch the sunset last night so I went upriver to see what I could see before showtime. I was starting to think it was a mistake because the sun had disappeared behind the tree line and now this part of the river was in shadows. I prefer direct sunlight when I’m out taking pics, but it was a beautiful evening and I didn’t care. Sometimes you just can’t. You have to be in the moment and enjoy it for what it is.
I was hearing an unfamiliar noise for five or six minutes before I saw them. I didn’t know what I was hearing and I was scanning the horizon of cordgrass for some new critter to come my way. And then, there they were, not on the horizon but right there on a mud bank and not twenty feet away: Two otters. Two of them. I’ve never seen a single one outside of a zoo setting and here, on my river, were two otters. I sat there, too stunned to even pick up my camera, as they slipped into the water. I couldn’t believe it. Over the years I’ve read accounts of otters returning to the Island but sightings in Nassau County were the last I heard about. To actually see one, let alone a pair, was too much. And I knew that unless I managed to get a shot of them not many folks would believe it. Heck, I barely believed it myself, but I’ve seen too many muskrats to think I was mistaking these two for them. These were otters and I had to get a pic no matter what the lighting was like. Just enough for ID at least.
I followed their wake – the water was shallow enough due to the outgoing tide – and when they resurfaced, I was ready. Big lie there. Huge lie. How could I be ready to photograph otters? I was already nervous and jerky just from seeing them in the first place. It was all too incredible, but up they popped and clicketly-click-click-click went my camera, lousy lighting and all. These are the best shots of the bunch. Enjoy. JK
Super shots! Nice little old dwarf men-otters bob-bob-bobbing along in the water studying you as you study them. 🙂 Adorable! I’m so happy there are otters on Long Island. Yippie!!!
Cute and amazing all at the same time.
I’m glad you two liked the shots. Long Island’s otter expert, Mike Bottini – http://www.mikebottini.com – says he believes these are the first photographs of otters in Suffolk County. I hope there’s more to come.
Another naturalist I know, Eric Powers – http://www.yc2n.com – has been installing artificial otter dens in the area in hopes of encouraging their return. JK
If I put an artificial otter den in my pond, will they come? (Like the baseball field in the movie?) 😉
Happy to see these pictures. My son Sean built 3 otter holts working with Eric Powers- as Sean’s Eagle project. He took a bit of abuse regarding the significance of this as an Eagle project……well -Sean made Eagle scout and maybe these otters are using his holts to live in!
Joe I am heading to the niss tomorrow morning. Did you encounter the otters when you went from the sunken meadow area or farther up the river?. I shoot with both a dslr and HD videocam. and would love to document this beautiful species. I met Mike Bottini several years ago the first day he ever went to Shu Swamp in Oyster Bay looking for the otters and showed hm around. This is very!!! Exciting!!. Hope to talk to you soon, Vince
Hi Vince.
I saw the otters north of the Landing Avenue bridge. There is a little park right at that bridge called Landing Avenue Park. It’s a Smithtown park so you may need a town parking sticker but it looks like a nice spot to put in. Happy hunting. JK
Hi Marilyn.
Kudos to your son for making the otter holts. Maybe those holts are the reason I got these pics. And congratulations for making Eagle Scout. That’s a major accomplishment, something to be really proud of. JK
Hi, im doing a repot on otters and i need some pics. I thought it would be cool to get some local ones. Can you email me some? thanks.
Someone on the LIWP Fb page recently commented that your river otter photos were the best of all LI sightings, so I had to be nosy… and I’m so glad I was! What an exciting moment it must have been… and such a unique vantage point from your kayak. These are great, so glad I looked!
Thank you Jane. It was indeed a moment, although I do believe that other people have taken better photographs since these were taken. JK.