Peter Nilsson, a nature conservation officer at the County Administrative Board of Västernorrland, says that seeing four otters at once is unusual. At the same time, it is a sign of a success story, as the otters have recovered significantly since environmental toxins nearly wiped out the Swedish population.
”The otter population in Västernorrland has quadrupled over the past 30 years,” says Peter Nilsson.
Where can otters be found in Sweden?
Nowadays, otters can be found throughout Västernorrland and even in areas where they were previously absent.
”They are now found along the entire coast,” he says.
Peter Nilsson states that the otter population has increased throughout the country and is now only missing in certain areas along the west coast.
The mink population is decreasing
It is suspected that the recovery of the otter population is one explanation for the decrease in the introduced American mink population. This would be a positive effect, as the mink is not considered to belong in the Swedish nature.
”We have no evidence for this, but we believe that it is related,” says Peter Nilsson.
