Oriental short-clawed otter

Scientific Name: Aonyx cinerea Animal Type: Mammal Location: Southern and north-east India, Bangladesh, southern China and south-east Asia. Conservation Status: Near Threatened

Profile

 

Otters are the only truly amphibious members of the weasel family. Most of the world’s 13 species of otter have undergone a dramatic decline in numbers during the last century, because of human activity. The main threats to their survival are habitat loss/degradation and water pollution. In addition, although most species are protected by law, they are still trapped for fur and hunted as fish thieves.

At Durrell we first began working with the short-clawed otter as a ‘model’ and mixed-exhibit species in 1999, with the arrival of a breeding pair. As it is thought to be one of the least threatened of the otters and is well represented in captivity, this species is being kept to develop successful husbandry methods for future use on more endangered species.

Our pair of otters now lives in the re-developed valley where they share a pond with several wildfowl species.

Factsheets

• Oriental Small Clawed Otter factsheet (85 kb)

Video

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