122 



Department of Conservation of Louisiana 



continent to southern South America, these shy creatures of 

 the wild are so solitary in their habits that they have man- 

 aged to retain their original range and numbers in spite of 

 increased population, an increased army of trappers and an 

 unbelieveable increase in the value of their pelt. The num- 

 ber taken each season in Louisiana exhibits a remarkable 

 uniformity. 



AccoHirv: '.o Verron Bailey an otter can 

 stand upright by ba'anc'nc; its heavy body 

 with its thick ta'l, the above sketch being 

 drawn f-om a photograph taken in the Wash- 

 ington, D. C, Zcoo^ical Garden. 



A sight of an otter in its native habitat is rare, even 

 among trappers. The animal's tracks and "signs" are seen 

 frequently, and once in a while, even in Louisiana where 

 low banks line the streams where the otter lives, are seen 

 otter "slides," slick places on the bank where the otters have 

 amused themselves by sliding down the earth into the water 

 so repeatedly as to form a chute. Frequently a flat slick 

 shelf or bench along side some bayou will be noted. This is a 

 so called "feeding shelf," on which the otter lies when de- 

 vouring its fish or when it desires to nap in the sun. 



