Good morning people, this week i thought i was unfortunate enough to have found myself working night shift and suffering all the usual ills. Tired, grumpy, upset tummy, confused and a total dislike of all who see the sun. My working week started off a bit worse than normal, i agreed to an overtime shift on Sunday night, a shiny new reel is on the horizon!. Anyhow my office is situated beside the Water of Leith which some of you may know is the river which runs through Edinburgh City center and while on a break on Tuesday night an Otter swam down the river no more than twenty feet away from me and i began to think night shift was was not that bad after all. At five forty the following morning on a break round the back of the office as i was watching the trout rising and hoping to spot the Otter again a Kingfisher flew up the river just past me. Over the past three nights i have made several more Otter sightings but did not spot the Kingfisher again. Anyway i am working my last night shift tonight and all is magical with the world. Sorry all but its a bit like when you first lost your cherry and then again when over fifty you pulled the pretty young thing. EVERYBODY had to be told. Bob

Good to see in the city isn't it The king fishers have been around for a long time, but the otters only started to repopulate within the city boundary within the last twenty years.

Norm

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0rWxCCHSCM

I love watching kingfishers, grew up in Kirkliston which has the river Almond flowing through it and there is now a good few pairs around.

My mate who does some evening Sea Trout fishing on the Almond has seen otters at Edinburgh airport but not very regularly.

I went for a walk along the water of leith a couple of weeks ago and seen a goldfinch on the top of the naked man statue (still dont think its art!!) that was pretty cool. I love watching bats down the water of leith at dusk during summer too!

If people just knew what was flowing through the urban jungle they might be happier... but dont tell them cause I like the quiet walks from Roseburn to Modern Gallery, rather than along the road!

I was sat in the garden the other evening and spotted an otter going for a feed into the weir (River Nidd) whom have totally cleaned out the trout, grayling and chub over a short period of time.It was initially lovely to see these creatures in the wild and was hoping they would move on - but they have totally killed off what was once brilliant fishing in the weir pools!It is also lovely to see the kingfishers,Dippers and heron but with the knowledge they aren't killing off the fishing stocks to anything like the same degree.

Jeez dna,
these creatures, and birds, have more rights to the fish than we have! The fact that they are coming back in numbers means that we are at long last starting to repair the damage of decades!!
long may it continue!
regards
bert

I've seen two dead otters in the last couple of years on the A91 passing through Bannockburn near the 'Bannock' burn (where it passes near Springkerse Industrial Estate) . Never seen one in the burn myself but here's hoping.

therealijn.