Volume 20 Issue 1 Pages 1 - 56 (April 2003)

Citation: Yoxon, G. and Yoxon, P. (2003) Otters in Europe Conference, Isle of Skye, Scotland.  IUCN Otter Spec. Group Bull. 21(1): 50 - 52

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Otters in Europe Conference, Isle of Skye, Scotland

Grace Yoxon and Paul Yoxon

After many months of preparation, the 'Otters in Europe Conference' finally arrived and for the next five days, Sabhal Mor Ostaig, the Gaelic College, was filled with the diverse tongues of around 100 delegates from some 22 different European countries. The week started well. On the very first night a few delegates watched two otters just below where the conference was being held. Their delight as they rushed in for dinner having watched otters, some for the first time in their lives, gave a great feeling of optimism that spread throughout.

On the first morning, Lady Claire MacDonald (wife of the Chief of the Clan MacDonald) welcomed the gathering of scientists, vets and rehabilitators, all specialising in otter work, to Skye, pointing out how such events as the conference are important not only to Skye, but as a means of people meeting in nice surroundings. Dennis Furnell (Joint president of IOSF) followed with his own words of welcome and presented an outline of what he hoped the meeting would achieve. Both speakers have supported IOSF since its outset and their enthusiasm and help has always been invaluable.

The first session was a grand tour around Europe, looking at populations of otters in both the East and West. All in all, things seem to be looking better for our Eurasian otter than it has for a long time. Most reports were very positive, but a few still told a story of no or slow recovery. However, the next session made us realise that we must not be too complacent, with threats from pollution, road accidents, oil contamination, habitat loss and water demand being discussed. It was pointed out that "it is a frightening thought that in parts of Scotland alone, we may be losing as many as 20% of our otters to road mortalities". The conference also looked at caring for, and veterinary work on, otters and also highlighted the importance of post mortems, not only to assist with diagnosis but also to indicate potential problems for the future. In the evening Peter van der Werff (IVM, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands) gave an invited keynote lecture on human perceptions of nature and wildlife that resulted in discussions during the rest of the conference.

Day two started with speakers looking at educational and economic aspects of otter conservation. In certain countries, such as Austria and the Czech Republic, otters cause a great deal of damage to fish farms and delegates looked at ways to compensate fish farmers and fencing of fish ponds. In other countries, such as Scotland, which
also has extensive aquaculture, there appears to be no conflict between the animals and the fish farm operators.

We then went on to look at the important and potentially controversial issue of re-introductions, how they have or have not worked and the future of such projects. Our second invited guest speaker, Thomas Serfass from Frostburg University, USA, described how he has been running a re-introduction programme since 1984 with great success. Re-introduction is currently underway in the Netherlands and it is vital to look at past projects to improve and prepare for any such work. Perhaps the most meaningful result of the wide-ranging discussions that followed was the agreement of the delegates that the question of re-introductions should be addressed on a case-by-case basis, and that it is not practical to have a policy of Thou shalt or shalt not re-introduce.

On Thursday, we had a trip around Skye to show our visitors something of our island, its scenery, wildlife and especially our otters. We stopped to look for signs of otters and how IOSF has been working to reduce road mortalities, and how some of these methods can hopefully be implemented elsewhere. We also had wonderful views of golden eagles and seabirds.

The final day looked at both classical and new methods of otter research. The classical methods included breeding of otters in the wild for re-introduction, and new methods included the use of genetics for monitoring.

The social part of the meeting was not forgotten, the small bar in the college was well used each evening. Here, social discourse was regularly mixed with scientific discussions as the whisky went down and the night developed into morning. One memorable event was the ceilidh organised by local children, who came and entertained us all in Gaelic song and music, ending up with everyone joining in a few Scottish dances - indeed a sight worth seeing.

So what were the conclusions? Overall, the conference was an excellent success. Many of the delegates (and I quote) said, "It has been one of the best conferences I have ever been to". In fact, Don Jefferies said, "Nowhere else can otter conservationists actually see wild otters at the conference site!" Valery Neronov, Head of Mammals, IUCN Species Survival Commission, also said "It was a good chance to see so many delegates from different countries and learn results of their important studies." The success of the event was largely due to the beautiful setting, the great food, the excellent talks and presentations, but mostly because it was otter people openly sharing experience and knowledge with no hint of ego.

From the programme committee, there goes a special thank-you to all the chairmen and speakers. With over 15 sessions and 40 presentations, the whole conference overran by only 30 minutes (and 20 minutes of that time had been agreed!!).

Everyone left knowing they have real friends all over Europe from the UK to Israel and Georgia, from Finland to Spam and Turkey - we all have people we can contact at any time for help and advice in our work. This can only be positive for otters in Europe as it is only by such open discussion and co-operation that anything can be achieved.

And the reward for the delegates (apart from new friends)? Sightings of up to five otters both morning and evening for everyone - not bad when you consider there were 103 people! Skye itself was at its best - beautiful sunny and warm weather throughout the conference, long hours of daylight and little darkness. This could not have been better even if we had wanted it to be.

Thanks to everyone who came, including the otters, and to the College and the sponsors who made this memorable event possible.

Acknowledgements - The conference was funded by Scottish Natural Heritage, Skye and Lochalsh Enterprise, Highland Council, Highland Biodiversity, Ellice MacDonald, and the IOSF).

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