January 2016 Mammal of the Month - The Otter

Otter - photo credit: Becky Thomas

Season's greetings everyone and wishing you all the very best for 2016.

Our first Mammal of the Month for the new year is.... the otter.

Our top five facts for this often secretive species are:

* They can live up to 10 years in the wild.

* Young are born in dens called holts and the mother looks after the cubs alone.

* They can have very large territories - up to 20 km of river!

* Their poo is called spraint - it smells sweet and musky and is often the only way you know that an otter is in the area.

* After almost disappearing from much of Britain in the last century they are now making an impressive come-back - BMG even has a record from very close to the Oracle Shopping Centre in the centre of Reading.

Find out more about the species on the Mammal Society's fact sheet at:

Otter fact sheet

and please record any sightings (of them or their signs) at:

BMG recording

November 2015 Mammal of the Month - The Fallow Deer

It's November already! Time to say goodbye to the hedgehog and welcome the fallow deer as our November Mammal of the Month.

Our top five facts for this species are:

• They were introduced to the UK by the Normans - they originally come from south-west Asia - and are now the most common deer in the UK.

• They are in between roe deer and red deer in size and have spotty coats and a white bottom edged with black stripes.

• The rutting season is October and November so keep an ear out if you're out and about in the woods this month.

• Females can live up to 16 years in the wild.

• Nearly 2/3 of their diet is grass but they will also browse young trees and eat acorns, beech mast and chestnuts in the autumn.

Please record your sightings at BMG Recording

If you'd like to find out more about this species check out the Mammal Society's fact sheet at: Fallow Deer