My First Attempt and Otter Spraint Analysis

On returning home from my wind blown expedition to set up my new remote camera I took the spraint sample I'd recovered from sprint site 1 and placed it in a new plastic vessel ready for processing.

I have been told by an otter expert that one of the best ways to break down sprint is to dissolve it in warm water using sterilising tablets used to clean dentures. Simply add enough warm water to to cover the sprint then add the sterilising tablet and leave it over night to work its magic.

The next morning the sprint should be completely dissolved and all you then need to do is drain off the excess water to leave the solid remains behind. And yes that is exactly what happened. You can then leave these to dry so that they are easier to handle but some people say that they can dry out and become distorted so it is easier to identify parts when still wet. I left mine to dry out.

What you are then left with is this.

What is left of the sprint after processing over night.

It was then a case of using my microscope and a pair of tweazers to pick out the bits that were most obvious or easiest to identify. One good tip is not to tip it all over the floor like i did after having sorted all the bits out. I lost quite a few in the process but managed to salvage those listed below. Please not in the images below the background is made up of a 1mm square grid for scale reference. Its amazing just how intricate and sculptural these tiny bones can be when you take the time to look at them closely.

Trout Jaw With Teeth	I think the most obvious thing i found was this Jaw including teeth. There was some debate as to whether or not this was a Pike Jaw but i don't think it is so, for the time being I'm calling it a trout. Note the grid behind this specimen is a 1mm square grid for scale.
Anterior View - Thoracic Vertebrae Lateral View - Abdominal or Thoracic Vertebrae	The small vertebrae I think also come from a trout and not a Pike this is because they have honeycombed Centrum with ribs. This indicates Salmonid (trout) rather than Pike which has no ribs. The ribs are hard to see in the photos but using a magnifying glass you can see them.
Lateral View - Caudal Vertebrae	Another vertebrae from a trout this time back end. The Caudal region, towards the tail end of the fish. Again I think this is a Trout.
Anterior View - Caudal Vertebrae
Unidentified bone Unidentified bone	These two images are of bones I can't identify