OTTERS. 



95 



the Adirondack region the number of fresh-water cray-fish consumed by these otters 



is enormous, this crustacean apparently forming as important a portion of their food 



as fish. The same writer also bears testimony as to the long journeys undertaken 



by the North American otter from river to river across country ; these journeys 



mostly taking place during the winter. On such occasions they " go so fast that a 



man has great difficulty in overtaking them. On the ice they proceed by a series 



of what boys call 'a run and a slide/ that is, they make several jumps and then 



slide ahead flat on their bellies, as far as their impetus and the smoothness of the 



ice permit, and then do the same thing over again, and so on." A curious habit of 



this otter is its propensity for sliding down smooth and steep banks, either of snow 



or of mud. Such gambols have been watched by several observers, from whose 



accounts it appears that in winter the animals select the highest ridge of snow, on 



to the top of which they scramble, whence, as Dr. J. D. Godrnan writes, they give 



themselves an impulse with their hind-legs, and swiftly glide head-foremost down 



the declivity, sometimes for a distance of twenty yards. This sport they continue 



apparently with the greatest enjoyment until fatigue or hunger induces them to 



desist. A pair on a mud-bank made upwards of twenty-two slides before they 



were disturbed. The number of young in a litter is said to be usually two, although 



there may occasionally be either one or three. They are born about the middle of 



April, and during the summer and autumn the female is generally to be seen 



accompanied by her two young. 



The fur of the otter is more valuable than that of any other 

 Pelage. __ J 



North American animal, and is in good condition from November till 



the spring, but is at its best period during the latter season. It is stated by Dr. 



Coues that the number of skins of the American otter exported by the Hudson's Bay 



Company to London in the year 1873 exceeded 11,000, while in 1891 the same 



company sold 8171 skins. The ordinary price varies from thirty to fifty shillings 



per skin. 



These otters are usually caught in steel traps, which are set 

 Trapping. J & L 



beneath the water where one of the " slides " or tracks of the animals 



leads to the margin. Sometimes the trap is, however, placed at the top of the slide 



and covered with snow. In neither case is any bait used; but in all methods 



the greatest care is necessary that no traces of the trapper's presence should 



remain, as the otter has very acute smell and sight, and is exceedingly wary and 



cunning. 



South America possesses at least three species of otters, of which the most 



noteworthy are the Brazilian otter and the feline otter. The Brazilian otter (L. 



brasiliensis) is much the largest of all the living species, and is dis- 

 Brazilian Otter. ,..,,, . . . . 



tmguished by the presence of a distinct ridge running along each 



side of the tail, whence it is often termed the margined-tailed otter. It inhabits 



the rivers of Brazil and Guiana, where it is known as the Ariranha. The length 



of the head and body is over 40 inches, while that of the tail is about 23 inches. 



The nose is completely covered with hair, and the general colour of the pelage is 



chocolate-brown, becoming lighter on the under-parts. The chin, as well as a large 



irregular patch on the throat, and some spots on the under-surface of the body are, 



however, whitish or yellow. 



