72 THE NATURALIST IN NORWAY. 



The otter does not take the trouble to make a regu- 

 lar domicile for itself. It seems to be too idle to do 

 that, or, perhaps, it will not take the pains to obtain a 

 habitation formed by its own industry, as is the case 

 with the beaver and badger. It takes up its abode in 

 natural holes in the ground, in the crevices of rocks, 

 under large stones, and sometimes even among floating 

 timber. Its den has by no means a pleasant smell, as 

 it is often the receptacle of stinking fish, which is con- 

 sidered a bonne bouche by the animal. 



The otter feeds on various kinds of fish, which it 

 catches with much skill and dexterity. It destroys 

 much more than it is able to eat, and feeds on the 

 most delicate parts, wasting the remainder. It does 

 not eat the head or tail of a fish, but prefers the back 

 part of the neck. When fishes are scarce, and it is 

 pressed by hunger, it leaves the water, and betakes it- 

 self to the farmyard, where it preys on poultry, suck- 

 ing-pigs, and even on young lambs. When pursued 

 by dogs, it dives under water, and, if hard pressed, 

 turns at bay, and severely bites its persecutors. 



The otter can be tamed, and especially when it is 

 captured young. Bishop Heber states that he once 

 passed a river in India where nine or ten otters were 

 busily engaged swimming about in the water, " te- 

 thered with straw collars and long strings to bamboo 

 stakes on the banks ." 



When first captured, the otter is wild and fierce, 

 and attempts to bite the person that feeds it ; after 

 some days, the loss of its natural element renders it 

 sick and feeble, when it becomes more tractable. If 

 it does not die, it soon becomes reconciled to its fate, 

 and may be tamed. The chief difficulty is to keep it 



