The wide-angle lens on OtterCam

After my initial success with attaching a wide-angle lens to one of my trail cameras I was encouraged to fit another to my newest camera.  As I wrote before, trail cameras have a fairly limited field of view and in the places I put them to watch otters I can't set them any farther back. The wide-angle lens offers an improved depth of field as well as the wider field of view.  I put the new one down by the water's edge near a popular scent-marking spot where the otters sniff to see which has been there recently, as well as leaving their own calling card.  It has been a success and works well despite being only a foot or two away from the otter.

The cameras also recorded a visit from a young fox.  The focus is pretty good despite the fox being close to the lens.  Most foxes don't like trail cameras but this one doesn't seem too bothered.

I moved one of the cameras to a new position in the roof of the culvert, where the wide-angle view again works well.  This is more behaviour I haven't seen before.  I think the dog otter is probably catching tiny fish - sticklebacks or fry - as I see them in the water when I check the camera.  The episode lasted for 10 minutes, not always in view, but I have edited it to be much shorter.

Exactly 24 hours later the otter was back for a repeat.

The sluice gate is also a popular fishing spot for a moorhen and a water rail who triggered over 100 video recordings!  You can see the otter's footprints on the gate.

I'll carry on experimenting to see what else the wide-angle trail cameras can reveal.