OTTER'S HAUNTS AND HABITS 



another family, when they are then left to fend for 

 themselves. From this it is apparent that the otter 

 has but one litter per year. 



There is a great deal yet to be learnt about the 

 otter, for, being more or less a creature of the night, 

 and elusive in its movements, it is extremely 

 difficult to study systematically. Otter cubs, 

 although somewhat delicate, are not difficult to 

 hand-rear, and make very interesting and tractable 

 pets. If healthy to start with, cows' milk diluted 

 with water is at first a satisfactory diet. Both 

 cubs and adult otters are of course easy enough to 

 study in captivity, but like many other creatures 

 confined under similar conditions, they soon 

 exhibit certain abnormal tastes and habits, and 

 therefore afford little or no real clue to their 

 behaviour in their natural habitat. At the 

 Zoological Gardens in London, the otters will eat 

 almost anything thrown to them by visitors. 



The bitch otter shows great affection for her 

 young, and will hang about in their vicinity in the 



face of hounds or human intruders. If a bitch 



47 



