Eurasian Otter : Spotted
Three Eurasian Otters were recently spotted in the Neeru stream of the Chenab catchment in Jammu and Kashmir.
- Eurasian Otter is a semi-aquatic carnivorous mammal.
- Scientific Name: Lutra lutra
- It has one of the widest distributions of all Palaearctic mammals.
- Its range covers parts of three continents: Europe, Asia, and Africa.
- 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.
- In the Indian sub-continent, Eurasian otters occur in cold hill and mountain streams.
- Conservation Status:
- IUCN: Near threatened
- Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule II
- CITES: Appendix I
