LUTRA. 



185 



water. There appears to be no particular season for breeding, but 

 the young are generally born in the winter, and the same is pro- 

 bably the ease in India. The period of gestation is about sixty-one 

 to sixty-three days, the number of young usually from two to five ; 

 these are blind for some time after birth. 



Otters are easily tamed when captured young, and become very 

 much attached to their masters, whom they will follow like a dog. 

 They are kept tame by fishermen in several parts of India, especi- 

 ally in Jessore, the Bengal Sunderbans, and on the Indus, and 

 are employed to drive the fish into nets, not, as in China, to actually 

 capture fish for their masters. 



93. Lutra ellioti. The smooth Indian Otter. ' 



Lutra monticola, Iludf/scni, J. A. S. B. viii, p. 320(1839); Anderson, 



An. Zool. Res. p. 207, pi. xii, ti^s. 1-3 (skull). 

 Lutra taraiyensis, Blijth, J. A. S. B. xi, p. 99, nee Hodgson. 

 ? Lutra simung, Ilorsfield, Cat. p. 116. 

 Lutra nair, Cantor, J. A. S. B. xv, p. 19") ; Blijth, Cat. p. 7'2, partim ; 



id. Mam. Birds Burma, p. 28, nee Cuv. 

 Lutra ellioti, Anderson, An. Zool. Res. p. 212. 



Ludra, Sindhi ; Hpyan, Burm. ; Phey, Talaiu ; Bung, Karen ; Mam- 

 rang, Amrang, Anjing-ayer, Malay. 



Fig. 49. — Skull of Lutra ellioti. {L. monticola, Anderson, An. Zool. Res.) 



The upper border of the naked muzzle is nearly straight from end 

 to end. Fur smooth and short. 



Skull elongate, but much less depressed than that of L. vulgaris. 

 Frontal region of skull with the sides parallel for some distance 

 behind the postorbital processes, and then suddenly constricted, so 

 that there is the appearance of a postorbital swelling. 



