West Coast Otters Wild

The west coast of Scotland. A beautiful but harsh place to live.

This stretch of the coastline

is home to two otters, a mother and daughter team who are inseparable.

We will follow these otters through a difficult period in their lives,

finding out if the cub will make it

through her first and most dangerous winter,

and if this special relationship will endure.

The lochs and estuaries of the west coast

provide shelter and rich feeding grounds for otters.

Very few coastlines are home to as many as here,

making this the UK's otter capital.

This two-kilometre stretch of coast is home to our pair of otters.

The youngster is only nine months old,

and she will probably stay with her mum for another six months.

At this age she is very playful,

despite already being nearly as big as her mum.

The close bond between mother and cub is obvious,

and the reason for this is fishing.

Fishing is a skill which has to be taught.

The cub is never more than a few feet from her mum,

watching her every move.

Mum knows which rocks are best for finding fish

and has regular fishing grounds.

The cub is learning fast,

but catching fish and hanging on to fish are two very different things.

It's January, and the middle of the harsh, Scottish winter.

Seals laze around on the rocks unconcerned by the cold weather.

They have a thick layer of blubber to insulate their bodies.

Otters only have their dense fur to keep them warm.

This means they have to burn a lot of fuel,

eating at least 15% of their body weight in fish every day.

Fishing is everything.

And not just for the otters.

Red-breasted merganser are adept fishers,

even if they sometimes bite off more than they can chew.

And even the hooded crows are in on the act,

checking around rocks for stranded fish and, of course, crabs.

Most of these neighbours are ignored,

but Mum is cautious of a nearby heron.

A stabbing peck from that beak is something to be avoided.

This sheltered inlet is perfect for the otter family.

And up on the rocks is another reason this location is ideal -

freshwater pools.

Otters need plenty of places to drink within their territory.

In midwinter, severe storms are par for the course,

and often batter the coast with hurricane-force winds.

Amazingly, even in these conditions, the otters are still out fishing.

They have to, or they will starve.

If mother and daughter become separated, the cub will not survive.

The storm is nearly at an end,

and across the sea, the mountains have an icing of snow.

Against all the odds,

both mother and cub have made it though this storm,

but there will be others to face through the rest of the winter.

SEABIRDS CALL

It's the beginning of February,

and Mum and cub appear to be doing well.

Mutual grooming to clean up after their latest fish meal

helps to further strengthen the mother and cub bond.

Between meals, the cub seems content to sleep.

Mum carries on fishing, occasionally checking on her daughter.

The cub is getting better and better at fishing.

Crabs are great practice,

and disorientating them helps to avoid those pincers.

The cub still has to rely on Mum for much of her fish

but that's all about to change.

Mum is very reluctant to let her share this catch.

Perhaps she's finally forcing her daughter to fend for herself.

As March approaches,

a big change is in store for the otter family.

This territory no longer just belongs to mother and cub,

another otter has moved in.

It's a male, and he could mark the end

of the special mother/daughter relationship.

He seems quite at home fishing in their stretch of coast.

Lumpsucker fish are his favourite food,

and this one should keep him going for some time.

Should he stay in this area,

he could be a potential mate for the cub's mother.

For now, though, he seems more interested in the rich pickings

this inlet has to offer.

If her mother does eventually mate with this male,

the daughter may have to leave.

Mum will not allow her grown-up daughter to compete with her for food

while she raises a new cub.

Until that time,

the special mother and cub relationship will continue.

Subtitles by BBC Broadcast - 2005