The otter is one of the hardest mammals to observe in Bulgaria. It is a nocturnal and very cautious animal that rarely shows itself to people. The otter is a protected species listed in the Red Data Book of Bulgaria, and its presence is a sure sign of clean water with enough fish and quiet, undisturbed banks.
The otter lives in Ecopark Vaya and the waters around it. Its traces – footprints on the muddy shore, remains of fish, the characteristic ‘paths’ through the reeds – are found regularly, and sometimes visitors are lucky enough to see it in person.
In 2021 the ecopark began targeted work to protect the otter. This includes preserving quiet stretches of bank with dense vegetation that are closed to visitors, where the otter can find shelter and raise its young, maintaining stable fish populations, and tracking its signs so as to know where and how it uses the territory.
The otter feeds mainly on fish, and this could make it a ‘competitor’ of fish farming. At Ecopark Vaya we see it differently: the otter is not a problem but proof that the ecosystem we have been restoring since 2015 works. A predator at the top of the food chain can live only where everything beneath it is in order.
The activity was carried out with our own funds and labour, as part of the ecopark’s constant commitment to the wild inhabitants of the wetland.
Few will ever see the otter at Vaya. But it is here – quiet, cautious and completely at home. And that is enough.
Project summary
Project: Protection of the otter
Year: 2021
Location: Ecopark Vaya
Activity: preserving quiet banks with dense vegetation, maintaining fish populations, tracking signs and presence
Funding: own funds and volunteer work
Status: completed, ongoing
Photo: Andy Willis / Unsplash