Otters in Shetland (pics added 30/10/2024)

dan_yell said:
still great shots john, i can imagine how annoyed you were when you saw it was only JPG!!
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I have no idea how I managed to change it - maybe accidentally did something with the touchscreen (keep forgetting it's there) luckily some of them turned out ok. Lesson to myself though to check first [emoji106]
 
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Cracking set :)......................I especially like the almost human pose in #33, I can imagine the drumming of the 'fingers' of its right paw with a think bubble "not him again.....quick someone catch another fish so he doesn't notice what we are up to....."

A real bucket list mammal for me, would love to see them one day maybe???
 
Box Brownie said:
Cracking set :)......................I especially like the almost human pose in #33, I can imagine the drumming of the 'fingers' of its right paw with a think bubble "not him again.....quick someone catch another fish so he doesn't notice what we are up to....."

A real bucket list mammal for me, would love to see them one day maybe???
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If you happen to visit Shetland in the future...:) Otters are good all year round, but May, June, July is best for seabirds, Orcas etc - and it's daylight til 23:00ish
 
love /33 - "can you ere me muther?!"

or Jack Benny! (i am not quite old enough to know who he is, but we used to do that pose as kids, for some reason, so i recognise it!)
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Hi John
Excellent set of images mate keep up the good work.
Regards
Richard
 
The first photo on your original post is cracking. Great shot.

EDIT: Actually, having seen more, they're all cracking!
 
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crieffy said:
If you happen to visit Shetland in the future...:) Otters are good all year round, but May, June, July is best for seabirds, Orcas etc - and it's daylight til 23:00ish
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When do the seabirds go? I would love to go to Shetland but the wife is not keen.
 
davholla said:
When do the seabirds go? I would love to go to Shetland but the wife is not keen.
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Hello,

Guillemots go from late July and Puffins from early August. Best time is mid May through to mid July, when the cliffs are alive - all easily accessible too. If wife likes shopping it's probably not the best place to come - great for beaches, scenery, seafood, escape from traffic and noise though.
 
Great shots, number 10 and 13 really stand out for me as classic otter poses. Hard to get good pictures.
 
A few shots of some fierce action this morning - the smaller female is seeing off a male who came too close to her cubs. Very grim light today with heavy showers of hail, so I had the ISO up to over 4000 to try and get a decent shutter speed to catch the movement. Fingers crossed for better weather tomorrow as I'm going to try and make the most of the midday low tide.

36
Otter Violence, Shetland by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

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Otter Violence, Shetland by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

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Otter Violence, Shetland by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

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Otter Violence, Shetland by John Moncrieff, on Flickr
 
Lovely light in the second image............... what a location to live, with such photogenic and appealing wildlife :)
 
Brilliant thread this, can't believe I missed it.

Wonderful shots, respect!!
 
Well that was quite an experience! It was quite a battle for the Otter to wrestle this Conger Eel to the shore (even had to fend off another Otter at the same time) Although I've seen a couple of Congers being eaten, this was the first time I've seen the landing of the catch. Photographed on Mainland Shetland.

42/ (bit of a blue cast with the first two I think)
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

43/
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

44/
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr
 
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crieffy said:
Well that was quite an experience! It was quite a battle for the Otter to wrestle this Conger Eel to the shore (even had to fend off another Otter at the same time) Although I've seen a couple of Congers being eaten, this was the first time I've seen the landing of the catch. Photographed on Mainland Shetland.

42/ (bit of a blue cast with the first two I think)
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

43/
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

44/
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr
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Yet another great set and for sure what a tenacious hunter the Otter is when challenged.
 
crieffy said:
Well that was quite an experience! It was quite a battle for the Otter to wrestle this Conger Eel to the shore (even had to fend off another Otter at the same time) Although I've seen a couple of Congers being eaten, this was the first time I've seen the landing of the catch. Photographed on Mainland Shetland.

42/ (bit of a blue cast with the first two I think)
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

43/
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr

44/
Shetland Otter and Conger Eel by John Moncrieff, on Flickr
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Very nice and fortunate you are in deed.

Making me twitch for a road trip
 
crieffy said:
Pricey place to get to unfortunately but worth it for wildlife and scenery - 4 pods of Orcas in last week too.
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Hadn't looked into the price of it. Yeah the wildlife opportunities would be worth every penny. I suppose the weather is a gamble thou
 
kingo15 said:
Hadn't looked into the price of it. Yeah the wildlife opportunities would be worth every penny. I suppose the weather is a gamble thou
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If you book flights far enough in advance it’s much better. Summer generally pretty good (never hot!) but often dry with a bit of a breeze (keeps midges away) Long hours of daylight from May til early September.
 
crieffy said:
If you book flights far enough in advance it’s much better. Summer generally pretty good (never hot!) but often dry with a bit of a breeze (keeps midges away) Long hours of daylight from May til early September.
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Yeah definitely going to look at this for next year. As we had a baby in Jan. So by next summer we can off load her to grand parents haha.
If you don't mind I pm when on the verge of booking up if you know of good places to stay etc
 
kingo15 said:
Yeah definitely going to look at this for next year. As we had a baby in Jan. So by next summer we can off load her to grand parents haha.
If you don't mind I pm when on the verge of booking up if you know of good places to stay etc
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No probs - I’ll PM my email
 
This is a wonderful thread, full of amazing interaction and photography. Great to see it all within one thread too, makes it so much easier to follow. Awesome work!
 
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