Learning Colors! They will stay with her for a little over a year, and they can mate and have babies of their own after they are two to three years old. OTTER FACTS FOR KIDS! Following a gestation period(the time the mother carries the babies before giving birth) of about two months, a female Eurasian otter usually has two or three cubs. These otters dine on fish, birds, and various crustaceans as they are opportunistic. The Best 20 Gallon Fish Tank Guide – 2021, The Best Aquarium Vacuum Buyers Guide – 2021, The Best Goldfish Food Buyers Guide – 2021, The Best Aquarium Rock Buyers Guide – 2021. They are fast and agile swimmers who have a silvery appearance when underwater due to bubbles of air being trapped in their fur. Otters sometimes sleep above ground in a ‘couch’ (den). Northern populations of Eurasian beaver usually have darker coloring. It also has a small nose and ears both of which can be closed while in water. A male otter can patrol up to 21km of river and leave ‘spraints’ (faeces) in prominent places such as under bridges, on large stones, on fallen trees to mark the territory. Otters are part of the Mustelid family of animals which also includes badgers, pine martens and weasels. 7. The white is also there under the face and down to the belly. It is endangered in some parts of its range, but is recovering in others. Cute! Males, known as dogs, are … The European otter is the most widely distributed otter species being widely spread across Europe. The Eurasian Otter has a long neck and it features a body style that is very broad. Which species are giant otters closely related to? Though Eurasian otters mostly live alone, they do care for their cubs. As for their size, the Eurasian otters reach up to 69 centimeters in length, of which about 42 centimeters correspond to their tail. Their skull is elongated and their snout crushed. 6. The otter’s inner fur (closest to its body) has 50,000 hairs per cm² and it is completely waterproof. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this. Hunting of otters was also common. Otters have webbed feet and claws – for swimming underwater. The charismatic otter, a member of the weasel family, is found on every continent except Australia and Antarctica. Very little is known about this species. Otters are now quite common, especially in the west of England. In local areas its presence will depend on the provision of suitabl… Eurasian Otters are a semi-aquatic mammal with predominantly light brown fur and a pale ventral area. Type: Mammal Location: One of the widest distributions of a UK mammal species, the Eurasian Otter is found throughout Europe, eastern Russia and China, south and south east Asia and north Africa. This animal has nictitating membranes on its eyes, which close, as the beaver goes under water. 7 FUN FACTS ABOUT OTTERS! The northern sea otters can weigh as much as 100 pounds. Otters also face problems with limited food supplies in some areas. There are 13 species of otter around the world and many of them are endangered. This sp… Giant otters Pteronura brasiliensis are the … The elusive otter is one of our top predators, feeding mainly on fish (particularly eels and salmonids), waterbirds, amphibians and crustaceans. You will notice that these white markings are different on each of them. Exposure to disease and parasites in the water and from food sources is also a primary concern. A male otter is called a dog, a female is a bitch, and the young whelp, pup or kit. The female sea otters are smaller as they grow up to 4.7 feet in length and weigh up to 73 pounds. There are 13 species of otter around the world and many of them are endangered. One of the interesting otter facts is that European otters eat 15% of their body weight every day and sea otters consume around 20 to 25% of their body weight each day. They can also close their small ears and nose when under water. Sliding and wrestling, belly flopping, and somersaulting, river otters really know how to play! Otters make a variety of different vocalisations – they include a high-pitched whistle between a mother and her cubs, twittering noises produced during play-fighting, and cat-like noises when fighting. While it does have the brownish color of coat, it also features white along the length of it. An adult Eurasian otter is about 1.1m long and weights between 7-10kg. Most are small, with short ears … The males of this subspecies weigh around 65 pounds while females are 45 pounds in weight. Find out more about otters with fun facts for kids. 1-5 Otter Facts 1. Fun Facts for Kids Each European otter within its territory of between 1 and 4 miles has fixed locations where it gets into and exits from... Otters are very playful animals and have been seen sliding down snowdrifts or mud banks on their bellies. Warm air trapped in a sea otter’s fur keeps them warm in chilly waters.When otters dive, they seal their ears and nose.The word otter comes from Old English and Indo European root words that were also used to create the English word for water.Otters have the densest fur in the world. Otters can dive as deep as 14m under the surface and spend 4-6 hours a day in water foraging. Not all otters use tools, but sea otters use them all the time. This site uses cookies and by continuing to browse it you are agreeing to our use of cookies. In 2001, a female otter at the Monterey … See photos ) or cavities under riverside tree roots which is normally hole. 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