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THE SEA OTTER, OR KALAN. 



creature, and is very fond of engaging in mock aquatic combats, which display tne 

 extraordinary powers of the creature to the very best advantage. When on shore, the 

 Otter can proceed at a considerable pace, and when in haste, employs a curious " lop- 

 ing " gallop as its means of progression. 



UPON the northern shores of the Pacific Ocean, and especially in those parts where 

 the Asiatic and American continents approach nearest to each other, an extremely large 

 species of Otter is found, which has the peculiarity of preferring the sea-coast to the 

 fresh-water lakes and rivers for the greater part of the year. 



SEA. OTTER, OR KALAN. 



The KALAN or SEA OTTER, is very much larger than its fresh-water relations, 

 being rather more than twice the size of the common Otter, and weighing as much as 

 seventy or eighty pounds. During the colder months of the year, the Kalan dwells by 

 the sea-shores, and can be found upon the icy coasts of the Northern Pacific, where 

 it is extremely active in the capture of marine fish. When the warmer months begin to 

 loosen the icy bond of winter, the Sea Otter leaves the coasts, and in company with its 

 mate proceeds up the rivers until it reaches the fresh-water lakes of the interior. There 

 it remains until the lessing warmth gives warning for it to make its retreat seawards be- 

 fore the fierce frosts of those northern regions seal up the lakes and deprive it of its 

 means of subsistence. 



It is rather a scarce animal, and is not so prolific as many of its relatives. The fur 

 of the Kalan is extremely beautiful, shining with a glossy velvet-like sheen, and very 

 warm in character. It is in consequence valued at a very high price. The color of 

 the fur is rather variable, but its general hue is a rich black, slightly tinged with brown 

 on the upper portions of the body, while the under portions of the body and the limbs 

 are of a lighter hue. In some specimens the head is nearly white, and in one or two 

 instances the white tinge extends as far as the neck. Indeed, the proportions of dark 

 and white fur differ in almost every individual. 



All the Otters are long of body and short of limb, but in the Kalan this peculiarity is 





