Chris Manning has kindly advised me that Dead Otters should be reported to the Environment Agency via 0800-807060 as soon as possible, so that EA staff can collect them to go off to Cardiff University for a post mortem. Do not 'collect' these yourself as you would technically need to be licensed to 'collect a European Protected Species'. Over 200 dead Otters were sent to Cardiff in 2008, sadly 85% of these were road casualties. Two were sent from Lincolnshire in 2007 and two more in 2008 and the results help to build up a picture of not only the distribution of Otters, but geographical variation in a variety of medical conditions, and other useful information that helps in the conservation of this vulnerable (but thankfully increasing) species.
Alan
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