While looking at some shots of this otter swimming in Juanita Bay, I noticed it was breathing out through its nose and creating some bubbles in the water ahead of it. It seemed like a silly thing but of course will happen all of the time when they are swimming. However, I like the idea that it is being silly and doing it on purpose so let’s go with that instead.
I was watching the water in the bay looking for the beaver to come out and feed. I saw something swimming across the surface and at first thought it was a beaver – if only a small one. It didn’t look like it was moving like an otter but it also didn’t seem like a beaver. A while later, I saw some more movement on the water heading for the shore. It looked a little different but I couldn’t say what it was. It then climbed out on to the bank and ran along a log.
I grabbed a few shots and thought it looked a bit like an otter but somehow different. I then lost it again and carried on shooting other subjects. When I got home, I went through the shots and realized I had been looking at two different creatures. The first one will get its own post in due course. The second one had me confused. I started googling images of stoats, ferrets and so on until I got to mink. The pictures of the mink look exactly like the animal in my shot. I think that is what it is. I have never seen a mink in the wild before so this was a pretty cool find for me.