Buster Update

Our otter cub, Buster, has been out a bit more frequently this past week. One of the days I was lucky enough to see him have another swimming lesson from mum... well I say swimming lesson... he seems to be pretty adept at doing it himself now, but this doesn't stop Emmy from grabbing him by the scruff of the neck and dragging him off through the water!

At least he doesn't scream anymore when she does this...

Here they are diving in together, and below you can see how small he still is... although growing fast! Remember, you can click on these photos to see them slightly larger if you wish.

As always I must remind you there are no guarantees he will be out this weekend if you are planning on visiting the Centre, but the sightings are becoming more frequent.

To see some of our other otters enjoying some huge trout for dinner, click on the "More BWC Photos" tab at the top of this page.

Wildcats on the Move

Earlier this week saw us say goodbye to our remaining three wildcat kittens bred here last year! It is always sad to see animals we have cared for and built a bond with leave, but this is exciting for wildcat conservation!

Cormac, Glen and Heather, born in the Spring of 2013, have been amazing ambassadors for wildcats and are now moving on to play a vital role in the future of wildcat releases back to Scotland. They have been collected by the New Forest Wildlife Park, where within the next few weeks they will be relocated along with others to an area in Scotland for the initial phase of the programme.

We will miss their acrobatics, as I am sure you will too, but wish them good luck for the future. I will bring you news as and when I can on how they and the plans are going.

This of course means our first wildcat enclosure is now vacant, and so will see us have a move around of cats in the coming week to allow both pairs to be in the main wildcat pens. This may also mean a return to keeper talk duty for MacTavish... Good luck to whichever keeper is going to do that... Just remember to wear thick boots!

BWC Photo Comp 2014 "JUNIOR" Shortlist

It is that time already when we start to announce the shortlisted entries for our photographic competition. This year has seen our most popular competition with over 600 photographs submitted over the past 9 months. This year Professional Wildlife Photographer David Llyod will be selecting his favourites to win each category. Check out his website, linked in his name, to see some amazing wildlife photography, David runs workshops here at the BWC, but is perhaps better known for his African wildlife photographs and inspiring black and whites. He currently has a book out "As long as there are animals" and I can highly recommend it!

So, let's get straight to it... First off is our "Junior" category for young photographers 16 years old or under. This year we had over 40 entries, and as always it was a difficult decision to narrow the field down to the shortlisted ten...

BWC Photo Comp "JUNIOR" Shortlist

Eagle Owl - Amy Stanwell

Intense stare of a hungry fox - Ben Duursma

Stoat - Emma Coates

Fox - Grace Redington

Rabbit's stare - Lauren Smewing

Hello Mr Hedgehog - Mike Jordan

Long eared owl - Mya Bambrick

Wildcat - Rio Surendran

Roly poly - Ross Madagan

Red Squirrel - Thomas Ivory-Bray

Winners and runner-ups will be announced over the early part of next year. Good luck to all the photographers above!