NOTES ON THE MAMMALS OF ESSEX 185
members in the south of Essex. According to J. Wentworth Day,
one area which has more than its share of foxes is that of Tilbury
Docks and their hinterland. Foxes are also recorded from gardens
in Dovercourt (S. A. Peck). Records of foxes occurring in urban
areas are particularly requested.
Badger: Meles meles meles (Linnaeus).
The survey of Badgers in Essex has progressed steadily and a
considerable amount of knowledge of the distribution of Badgers
and their setts has now been built up. A comprehensive report
on the Badger in Essex, by D. Scott, was published in 1960, and
it is recommended that reference should be made to this paper.
Since the publication of this report, several new setts have come
to light. Two of these are in the Halstead area, and this fact
is encouraging because north Essex has so far yielded few new
records of the Badger compared with the south of the County.
In south-west Essex, in the Epping and Hainault Forest areas,
the Badger setts under close observation have produced fifteen
cubs in 1961, and fourteen in 1962, which compares favourably
with past years and seems to indicate that the animal is holding
its own. In the south, the South Essex Natural History Society
has been studying the Badger for some years, and at present a
further ambitious programme is under way. It has been decided
to co-operate with the National Badger Survey of the Mammal
Society of the British Isles, and this arrangement will no doubt
be mutually beneficial.
Otter: Lutra lutra (Linnaeus).
Most of the earlier records were from the River Blackwater
and the River Colne, although several other localities are
mentioned. In 1957, it was stated by G. Dent (in private corres-
pondence) that the Otter was "regularly incident on all the major
rivers of the county", and that their numbers had remained con-
stant, possibly increasing a little, over 50 years. In more recent
years, the Otter is recorded from Bradwell, Wrabness, Canvey
Island, the River Roach, the River Stour, and Abberton Reser-
voir. Even when one is certain that the Otter is present in a
particular place, direct observation is notably difficult owing to
the animal's secretive habits, and therefore many records are
based on indirect evidence such as tracks and droppings.
Stoat: Mustela erminea stabilis Barrett-Hamilton.
Laver states (1898) that the Stoat was very common through-
out Essex. It now appears to be scarce in many of its former
haunts. It was once common in the Chelmsford and Danbury
areas, for instance, but is evidently scarce there now. Recent
records are sporadic and include Stoats either shot or seen at
Bradwell, Skipper's Island, Wivenhoe Park, and in the grounds
of Wansfell, the college at Theydon Bois. It is hoped that more
active recording would show this species to be less uncommon than
the present records suggest.