Asian Small-clawed Otter

About this species

Size

Head and body 47–61cm; tail 26–35cm

Weight

Captive adults 2.7–3.5kg

Diet

Crabs, mudskippers and fish; also snakes, frogs, insects and rats

Habitat

Shallow hill streams, marshes, mangroves, rice fields and coasts

Range

India to Southeast Asia; in India West Bengal, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, coastal Odisha, Karnataka and the Nilgiri and Palni hills

Litter size

1–7 pups

Gestation

62–86 days

The Asian small-clawed otter is the smallest otter in the world. It has deep brown fur with a rufous tinge on the back, paler below, and whitish cheeks, lips, chin and throat. The claws are short and almost erect, and do not extend beyond the pads of the webbed feet. The tail is thick, muscular and more than half the body length. Head and body length is 47–61 cm (Wikipedia, general species account).

In India it is found in West Bengal, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, on the Odisha coast, and in Karnataka and the Nilgiri and Palni hills, where it lives in shallow creeks up to 2,000 m. Threats named in India are forest clearance for tea and coffee, overfishing and pesticide pollution. It is mostly active after dark and lives in groups of up to 15, and its main foods are crabs, mudskippers and small fish. Captive pairs are monogamous (Wikipedia, general species account).

Description: Wildlife of India guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com); general species information paraphrased from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)