NATURALIST'S 



NOTEBOOK 



Agile Acrobats 



By Ryan Reynolds 



Liver otters are social creatures, often 

 playfully chasing and wrestling each other in 

 the water and along muddy banks. 



Such slippery areas are perfect for 

 "bound sliding," a technique for gliding into 

 the water on their stomachs. 



River otters can bound slide up to 18 feet 

 — reaching speeds upwards of 20 mph. 



"They may be having a little bit of fun 

 doing it, but it might be the easiest way to the 

 water," says Lisa Gatens, mammal specialist at 

 the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences. "River 

 otters do it repeatedly." 



Muddy banks provide more than an 

 easy route into the water. Tree roots and 

 abandoned beaver dams along the edge of 

 nvers are their homes. River otters can't dig 

 their own burrows, so those underground 

 shelters play a pivotal role in their survival. 



Back in the 1 800s and early 1 900s, there 

 were barely enough river otters to occupy 

 even a handful of beaver dams. Uncontrolled 

 trapping, water pollution and destruction of 

 the natural environment proved to be major 

 contributors in the decline of the river otter 

 population in the eastern United States. 



By the 1970s, successful reintroduction 

 efforts were beginning — making the nver otter 

 a mainstay not only in lakes and rivers in North 

 Carolina, but also along our coast. 



"The only concerns I have heard now are 

 otters being introduced where there's stream 

 fishing activity," explains Gatens. 



"The fishermen are complaining about 

 [river otters] eating game fish like trout," she 

 says. But, she adds, trout aren't common in a 

 nver otter's diet. 



Whether or not river otters prefer trout, 

 their ability to stay under water for long 

 periods of time — up to four minutes — allows 

 them to catch other fish species. River otters 

 eat smaller fish underwater, but bring larger 

 meals to shore. 



"They have incredibly sharp teeth and a 

 real strong carnivorous design," says Gatens. 



Lack of natural predators is another 

 factor that has helped the river otter 

 populations increase. 



"River otters are so fast and so elusive," 

 says Gatens. "They're not susceptible to 

 predation by larger land animals." 



In fact, river otter populations have 

 grown large enough that 27 states have river 

 otter hunting seasons. River otters now can 

 be trapped in season in many eastern and 

 coastal counties in North Carolina, except 

 parts of Roanoke Island, according to the 

 N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. 



Narrow, brown bodies and white 

 patches around their face distinguish river 

 otters from other species in the Mustelid 

 family, such as minks and weasels. Strong 

 swimmers, otters use their muscular tails and 

 webbed feet to glide through rushing water. 



"River otters have streamlined bodies, 

 and their tails are so strong," says Gatens. 

 "Their bodies are similar to the shape of a 

 trout's, which are adapted to swim through 

 strong currents." 



But their bodies are longer than even the 

 biggest trout. 



River otters grow to around three to four 

 feet, with long tails accounting for nearly one- 

 fourth of their body length. 



Continued 



20 EARLY SUMMER 2005 



