96 CARNIVORES. 



In some of the South American rivers these otters may be met 

 Habits. 



with in large companies, and they differ from most other species in 



being purely diurnal, commencing their hunting with the dawn of day and con- 

 tinuing till nightfall. When in such companies, the otters utter a kind of whistling 

 sound, which is said to have some resemblance to the mewing of cats. Hensel 

 states that, when travelling on the Brazilian rivers in a canoe, the voyager, when 

 shooting out from beneath the overhanging branches of a tree, may often see a 

 number of black objects in the water, which at his approach tend to collect together. 

 Careful observation will show that these are otters, but by the time the canoe has 

 reached the spot where they were first seen all will have disappeared. Soon, 

 however, the traveller's ears are struck by a peculiar snorting sound, and, as he 

 looks around, he sees the water on all sides dotted with the dark heads of the giant 

 otters, which, with a second snort, disappear again as quick as lightning beneath 

 the surface. 



_ _. . The feline otter (L. felina) is, on the other hand, one of the 



Feline Otter. J ... 



smallest members of the group, agreeing approximately in size with 



the Indian clawless otter. It is characterised by its relatively short face and its 

 light and delicate teeth, the inner tubercle of the upper flesh-tooth being much 

 smaller than in the other species from the same regions. This species also 

 differs from other otters in being almost exclusively marine in its habits. In 

 regard to its distribution, Mr. O. Thomas states that "in the Southern Hemi- 

 sphere it extends to the Straits of Magellan, where its range meets that of the 

 larger Brazilian otter. Thence northward it is exceedingly common along the 

 coasts of Patagonia and Chili, where the complex labyrinths of gulfs and channels 

 are highly favourable to its manner of life." It has been found in Peru and 

 Ecuador. 



In regard to the naked-nosed and flat-headed South American otters, inter- 

 mediate in size between the two last species, there is still much uncertainty, but 

 they are all provisionally included under the name of L. paranensis. 

 smooth Indian In addition to the common European otter, which, as we have 



otter. already seen, is represented by a variety in India, there are three 

 Indian and Malayan representatives of the group. The first of these species is the 

 smooth Indian otter (L. macrodus), readily distinguished from the common otter by 

 the upper border of the naked portion of the muzzle forming a straight line, while 

 the fur is very smooth and short. Then, again, the skull is less depressed and 

 flattened, and the molar and flesh-tooth in the upper jaw are very large, the latter 

 differing from the corresponding tooth of the common species by the larger 

 proportionate size of the tubercular portion on the inner side of the blade. This 

 otter is found all over India, and also extends to Burma, the Malay Peninsula, and 

 Sumatra. Its habits appear to be very similar to those of the common otter, and, 

 like the latter, it is trained for fishing. 



Hairy-Nosed The hairy-nosed otter (L. sumatrana) is a very well-marked 



species from the Malayan region, distinguished, as its name implies, 



by the muzzle being completely covered with hair ; the inner tubercle of the upper 



flesh-tooth being relatively small. A closely-allied extinct species (L. palceindica) 



occurs in the Siwalik Hills of Northern India. 



