Otters: The Otter

Introduction

The otter is a carnivorous mammal in the Weasel family, also known as the Mustelidae family. It also includes other animals such as weasels, minks, badgers and wolverines. All current species are semi-aquatic, aquatic or marine. There are a number of Otter species such as the Oriental small-clawed otter, European otter, North American river Otter, Sea otter and Giant otter. The Oriental small-clawed otter is the smallest otter and the Giant otter is the largest otter, and longest member of the weasel family.

Modern Organism

Appearance

River otters have slender and streamlined bodies. Sea otters have broader bodies and have larger rib cages. The colour of their fur can range from light beige to dark brown or nearly black. Their legs enable them to swim, walk, groom and manipulate prey. River otters have webbed fingers and non-retractile claws on all feet. Congo and Asian otters have small claws with partial webbing. Giant otters have large feet with thick webbing and

For otters who spend almost all their time in water, such as the Sea otter, their diet mostly consists of fish, crustaceans and molluscs. Their teeth are specially adapted to eating shellfish which allows them to crush shells and scoop out the meat. Sometimes to eat crustaceans and molluscs, otter hold a rock on their chest and repeatedly pounds the prey against the rock until it breaks or opens.

Otters have a high metabolic rate because they need to maintain their body temperature. To generate body heat, they must eat a substantial amount of food. River otters eat around 15 – 20% of their body weight every day, and Sea otters eat about 25 – 30% of their body weight daily. Sea otters require more food to maintain their body temperature because they have no blubber, unlike most marine animals and they spend much more time in water compared to other otter species, which causes them to lose body heat