ON THE WINTER BREEDING OF THE OTTER. 249 



instances there adduced, the birth of the young might with 

 certainty be referred to the autumn or winter months. The 

 particulars will be found at p. 173 of the same volume, and 

 these I will number from 24 to 29 inclusive. There were also 

 four other records which I doubtfully referred as follows : — 

 (No. 30*) November, (31*) March, (32*) October, (33*) May. 

 (Doubtful cases I will mark with an asterisk.) At the same time 

 I mentioned a baby Otter (34) picked up dead on the banks of 

 the river Want, December 15th, 1872; two others (35) killed 

 near Maidenhead, January 10th, 1875 ; and a third instance (36) 

 at Llechrhwyd, in January, 1875. These were recorded at various 

 dates in the columns of ' Land and Water.' 



Again, in 1882, at p. 201 of ' The Zoologist,' is a most 

 instructive paper on the breeding of the Otter, by Mr. Cocks. 

 A female Otter (37), received by him in March, and weighing 

 2| lbs., would be probably not more than three months old, 

 which would place its birthday in the month of December, at the 

 earliest. In two instances female Otters in his possession came 

 into season in the month of August, and a litter (38) was born 

 about October 12th. 



I have before remarked that I do not place much reliance 

 upon these instances, as the animals were not in a state of nature ; 

 but so far as they go, they tend to support my views. Mr. Cocks's 

 young Otter came into season in the month of August, when ten 

 months old, and the period of gestation being (as he has shown) 

 sixty-one days, a young Otter would probably have her first litter 

 when twelve months old, and it seems not unlikely, as the young 

 ones remain for about nine months with their parent, that this 

 first date of reproduction would govern the period of subsequent 

 births. It would thus follow that in a state of nature, the Otter 

 might be expected to be a winter breeder. 



In looking through the pages of ' The Zoologist,' I find 

 several other records of the breeding of the Otter, which may 

 be quoted here. The two instances given at pp. 122 and 172 of 

 the volume for 1879 are already included in my own notes. In 

 the volume for 1877 I find it stated that Mr. E. H. Rodd saw, on 

 December 5th, a very young Otter (39) in Mr. Vingoe's laboratory 

 at Penzance. 



In 1885 (p. 168) Mr. M. Browne mentions the capture of an 

 old female Otter and four blind young ones, on the banks of 



