Smooth
Coated Otters like to eat insects, worms, crustaceans, frogs, water rats. turtles
and fish. They hunt in groups by herding fish into a small area. In India &
Bangladesh, fishermen have capitalized on this and now train them to herd fish
into nets. They are the largest
of the otters found in Asia and are also monogamous. Their natural predator
is the crocodile but, like most creatures, their biggest threat is man.
They
are listed by the red list as being Threatened - Vulnerable. This is mainly
due to loss of wetland habitat, contamination of waterways by pesticides and
poaching. They are hunted for their fur and their liver is prized in Chinese
Medicine. Further to this, as human encroachment into their habitat continues,
they are more often catching diseases from domesticated animals. They are susceptible
to feline entiritis and canine distemper
Smooth
Coated Otter
