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indeed, the reeds do not grow in the shallow water, or the hillock 
upon which it is placed he not actually afloat. The nest referred 
to (No. 5) was found in a reed-hed near Dilham, in February, 
1865 the man who found it describes it as a “hillock of rushes 
and all manner of weeds” as much as would fill a cart, “it had 
three or four side entrances and one at top j Mr. Norgate adds, 
“ the man saw the old one in the nest through the top hole, 
through which he made a dash with his hands; the otter attempted 
to make her escape through one of the side holes, the man caught 
hold of the otter’s tail, the otter instantly turned round and bit 
the mans marsh-boot quite through.” The nest was found in 
cutting the reeds, and was situate in the centre of the reed-bed, 
about thirty yards from the water. The four young ones which 
this nest contained were taken alive to Mr. Taylor, of Dilham, 
who a few days after shot a female, which he believes to have been 
their mother. The Hovetonnest from which No. 14 young one was 
brought by the dog, is thus described by the broad-keeper, Hewitt, to 
the Eev. T. J. Blofeld, to whom I am indebted for the information ; 
it “ was placed in an impenetrable morass on the top of what we 
call a ‘ gnat-hill ’ or ‘ tussock,’ and was composed of little more 
than the rough herbage of the gnat-hill itself.” The Eanworth 
keepers speak of the otter’s nest as a heap of rough staff collected 
together in a reed-bed ; Wright has twice found such a nest, the 
last time four years ago. Platford, the Barton Broad keeper, speaks 
of the nest as a lumja of grass, &c., on a hillock or “ hover ” near 
the side of the broad — from such a nest he took the three young 
ones. No. 12. He has found at least ten such nests in all, two 
this winter, one on the 23rd of November, which Avas destroyed by 
the water rising over it, and another about the same time in a 
different part of the broad. The second nest he found when reed- 
cutting, it was on what he calls a “hover,” a sort of island 
in the morass which rises with the water, and is so favourite 
a resort of the otter that he frequently stops in passing such a 
spot to examine it for one. Thinking there might be an otter 
inside he thrust his fork into it, but the quantity of material was 
so great as to prevent the fork reaching the beast, if it really was 
inside at the time. The nest, which was still quite warm inside, 
was carefully constructed of reeds, and lined with reed to])s and 
“ champed ” stems. Whether any of those ten nests may liavc 
