Eurasian Otter : Rescue Operation
A rescue operation conducted by the Pune Forest Department and RESQ Charitable Trust has revealed a rare Eurasian Otter in Indapur, Pune District, a species previously unrecorded in this area.
- The Eurasian otter, also known as the European otter, Eurasian River otter, common otter, and Old-World otter, is a semiaquatic carnivorous mammal native to Eurasia.
- Scientific Name: Lutra lutra
- It has one of the widest distributions of all palearctic mammals, spanning countries in the Middle East, Europe, and Northern Africa, across to Eastern Russia, China, and other Asian countries.
- In India, it occurs in northern, northeast and southern India.
- It lives in a wide variety of aquatic habitats, including highland and lowland lakes, rivers, streams, marshes, swamp forests, and coastal areas, independent of their size, origin, or latitude.
- In the Indian subcontinent, it is found in cold hills and mountain streams.
- It is an elusive, solitary otter.
- It has sleek brown fur, which is often paler on the underside, and a long, lithe body with a thick tail and short legs.
- Adaptations for an aquatic lifestyle include webbed feet, the ability to close the small ears and the nose when underwater, and very dense, short fur that traps a layer of air to insulate the animal.
- Many sensitive hairs (‘vibrissae’) frame the snout; these help the otter to locate prey.
- It has an acute sense of sight, smell, and hearing.
- Vocalizations include a high-pitched whistle between a mother and her cubs, twittering noises produced during play-fighting, and cat-like noises when fighting.
- Conservation Status:
- IUCN: Near threatened
- Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule II
- CITES: Appendix I
