Mull Adventure Blog - Part 8

Greetings once again dear reader from this most diverse and addictive of Islands! And so it appears that I have learnt to ways and routines of Sea Life Surveys. I would not for one second claim to know everything (if only!) as this job entails a constant and considerable learning curve. However it can be said that I now know what I’m doing more so than I did at the beginning! And armed with this knowledge we set off one day on a 7 hour whale watch with Popz skippering and Ewan as my co-guide. The introductions were made, the educational talks given and various species of wildlife spotted. And so it was that we arrived at the somewhat magical place known as the Cairns of Coll. As usual we were going to take our best beloved passengers over to the white sands in the rib and then bring them back some time later. The slight problem with this was that neither Ewan nor I had operated the rib to the level that was needed for this procedure. So we decided to do what many of us do when we find ourselves in such situations...we would blag it! Ewan enthusiastically jumped in and started her up, the passengers loaded and we set off over the shallow turquoise gloriousness that is the waters around the Cairns. Ewan, learning to drive as he went, gave me the signal to cut the engine and then we landed on the sand once I pulled up the outboard with my considerable Yorkshire strength! All was going well. We repeated the process and the first problem arose. We couldn’t get Sula back. For those of you who don’t know, Sula is Popz’ dog who enjoys a bit of exploration at the Cairns and often partakes in a little playtime with the resident Atlantic Grey Seal population.

Many shouts later she would still not leave her seaweed covered precipice and we decided to leave her until it was time to bring passengers back to the boat. That time eventually arrived and Sam called all the passengers back, rather hastily as we were already running slightly late. Once everyone was back in Ewan, Sam and I attempted to push the boat out with Ewan’s manly strength and my skills with an oar! This failed. We had beached the boat. We unloaded all the passengers, pushed the boat out into the shallows and asked everyone to get back in. Embarrassing enough? Apparently not as, once everyone was aboard we still couldn’t get the boat out! The procedure was repeated. We finally pushed off from the shore and the engine was started to many whoops and cheers. Thankfully Sula had decided she’d had enough of the seals and leapt on the boat as we left. Once all were safely back aboard Sula Beag Ewan and I reflected on the things we had learnt from that particular experience. Needless to say we had learnt a lot! Nevertheless the passengers enjoyed themselves and a great day was had by all.

And now, dear reader, we have arrived at the most extraordinary of days. Mustelid Magic day! Now as some of you may know I had spent 6 weeks on Mull fruitlessly searching for Otters. Spirits were low but determined as my day off approached, the weather cleared and I marched out onto the shorelines praying for just a glimpse of the elusive creatures. I was not to be disappointed!

I decided to spend the morning at Loch Na Keal where I had scouted out a perfect place for the wee beasties and where, the previous evening I had drawn a blank. Sam, Kathy and Ewan who were there with me were rather alarmed at my darkened mood that night! I sat quietly on the rocks, camera equipment at the ready, binoculars around my neck and my faithful puffin poo hat atop my head. I watched and waited. Finally I caught sight of a brown flash of movement to my right and sauntering down the rocks straight towards me and completely oblivious to my presence was an Otter! I don’t think that much adrenalin had ever graced my system before; I was elated! The camera was hastily grabbed and I sat poised, breathless with anticipation as my new little friend came over the rock and gave me a good look and sniff. He quickly raced on before I managed to locate him and get a shot but I did note that this was a particularly small and dark looking Otter. I thought to myself that it was perhaps just a cub that had been in the water and prayed that he would show himself again.

Thankfully my prayers were answered as I crept through a labyrinth of grasses and ditches half filled with water. I spotted him again, finishing off a recently caught fish on a rock. Just as I got the camera into position he dove back into the water once again, leaving the tail of the fish on the rock as tantalising evidence that I wasn’t imagining all this! Once again I backed off to give him the chance to come closer without realising I was there. The plan worked! He popped his little head over the ridge of a ditch and I snapped my first shot. At the sound of my shutter he looked the other way and I snapped another. Two perfect profile pictures! He slunk off again and I reviewed them, giddy with excitement that I’d finally seen one. As I looked at the shots I was struck by the large ears, blunt nose and a slight blotching of white on his dark throat. Then it struck me, this was no Otter! Do please forgive me dear reader but a few profanities were uttered as I reassessed the situation. I had a mustelid but what was he? The cogs in my biology brain sped into action and I arrived at the answer. Here I had...a mink! So not only was this not an Otter it was not even a native species!

Cursing the entire family of mustelids I sat still, seething at my luck to see if he would return. After all, he was kind of cute. As a biologist though I am not allowed to like these animals as they compete for resources with the very animals I was looking for and therefore have a detrimental effect on them. However this mink of mine came through one of the ditches and gave me a sniff. They have terrible eyesight so I was in no danger of being seen, even at this distance but their sense of smell if fantastic. Luckily I was sat just downwind of him. I got a few more shots including a close up of his face before he scampered off for more of his mink adventures.

And so it was decided to leave this place. After a quick phone call to Natalie to bewail my situation I headed down the spine of the Island. I stopped off at Fishnish where there was Otter habitat aplenty and stayed for a couple of hours. There was nothing. My mood once again blacker than a typical Mull sky I drove further south, parked, settled myself on a ridge of rock and waited. Eventually I saw a brown shape in the water briefly. I focussed the binoculars on it just as it dived but up he came again and finally, after six weeks, hours of blank searches and one mistaken mink later I had, at last, laid eyes on my Otter! Gone was that surge of adrenaline, gone was that sense of urgency to get a perfect photo, all I felt was relief. Relief that at last my searching was over and here he was, a beautiful dog Otter for me to enjoy.

He swam just offshore for a long time, catching lump suckers and crustaceans and deftly eating them whilst floating in the water. Gradually he started to swim a little closer and our game began. He would dive and I would run, he would surface and I would freeze. It all had to be timed well and the aim was to get to where he was headed before he got there. He finally came ashore to settle and I was still a long way off but I happily sat and watched him wash and roll in the seaweed through the binoculars. After this he decided to have a little nap. Here was my chance! With the speed of a tortoise that has mobility issues I crept closer, my muscles screaming in protest as each leg was precariously balanced on for an obscenely long amount of time! If ever he looked up I froze, terrified that all this work would be for nothing. Helpfully (!) my camera and binoculars were swinging wildly from my neck and I knew any noise would scare my little friend off so I had to hold those in one hand whilst steadying myself on the rocks with the other. It was tremendously difficult! However I stopped a little way off and snapped away. He happily snoozed in front of me, occasionally looking up to see what the noise of my shutter was but thankfully he remained unperturbed. After a few shots I decided to just sit there and watch him sleep. Here I was looking at this beautiful Otter and suddenly the whole effort was forgotten and every hour of wasted time was worth ever second I got to spend with him. It was a truly glorious moment!

After a while he woke up and decided to go fishing again. I watched him swim out and, thinking that was it, crept off the rocks and up onto the grass bank. However he turned around and came back again, this time with a crustacean of some sort clamped in his proud jaws. He clambered back onto the rocks, just in the golden light of the setting sun and I couldn’t believe the perfect conditions for a few more snaps. As he began to devour his meal I began to crawl again, feeling like Gollum from Lord of the Rings! I managed to get close, very close. I could hear him nosily chewing and crunching away behind a rock but all I could see was the top of his head. Once he’d finished though he came around and started heading straight towards me. I couldn’t decide whether to watch or snap and I was sure the noise would disturb him. I took a couple of tentative shots which stopped him and then I put the camera down. He wondered around the rocks for a little longer before heading off once more out into the water.

By this point I was very conscious that the tide was coming in and, not wanted to get stranded headed back to the grass ridge. He swam around his own ripples in the water until deciding to come back one last time. This time I decided to watch from where I was. Being eaten alive by the relentless Scottish Midgie I watched him rub along the seaweed and have one more short nap before leaving for good. I had spent about an hour with him and I was ecstatic with the photos I’d gotten. It was truly magic; there really are no other words for it! Grinning from ear to ear I happily trotted back to the car and sang all the way back to Salen.

The next morning came and everyone in the office received hugs and joyous proclamations as to the wonderfulness of the Otter! I hope to see my little friend again sometime soon but for now I hope he is doing well where he is and I thank him for that most fantastic of experiences.

Sarah

Guide