Otters one of the carnivorous (meat eaters) animals and are generally be found
on all continents except Australia and Antarctica. Otters are intelligent, friendly,
and curious. Otters are especially known for their playfulness. They live mostly
in rivers, lakes, and coastal areas, though the sea otter is found in the northern
Pacific Ocean, all along the coast of North America.
Otters have a slender body with a long neck, small ears, and short legs. The
tail is quite thick at the base but pointed at the end, giving the animal a
streamlined profile in the water. Most species, or types, of otters have feet
that are webbed for swimming. Most have sharp claws on their feet, and all but
the sea otter have long muscular tails.
Their preferable diet is fish but they also can consume frogs, crayfish and
crabs. They need to catch at least 100 fishes per day to survive. Otter lives
in a den called as Holt. Male otters are called as dog-otters, female otters
are called as bitches and baby otters are called cubs. In addition to the sea
otter, the giant otter, Eurasian otter, and many other species are considered
endangered.
The otter has few enemies but bears and foxes have been known to grab baby
pups from their nest. But, man is considered the worst enemy because of their
valuable fur. Although he is not as big a threat today as he once was during
the age of the fur trappers.
Otters have also been killed because they compete for prey with human fishers
and waterfowl hunters. Habitat destruction is a constant problem.
