Mammals have adapted to life in ground-air, soil and aquatic environments life, there are flying animals. In various natural and climatic zones, mammals inhabit forests, meadows, steppes, deserts, and mountains. They live along the banks of reservoirs, in rivers, lakes, seas and oceans. According to the way of life, mammals are combined into several ecological groups. Animals of the same ecological group have characteristic features structure, life, behavior (Fig. 218). (For an explanation of the name "ecological group" see § 49, in an essay on the ecological groups of birds.)

Typically land mammals inhabit forests and open spaces. They have a proportionally folded strong body, well-developed high limbs, a muscular neck. They move by walking, running and jumping. The signs of the group are most pronounced in fast-running animals.

Among land animals there are many herbivorous species - these are deer, horses, antelopes, goats, rams, etc. Mammals that feed on branches and leaves of trees have special adaptations. So, the giraffe has a well-developed neck. This allows him to pluck leaves that are inaccessible to other land animals, to see well and to detect enemies in time. Elephants have a powerful compact body, a massive head and a short neck, offset by a long movable trunk.

Predatory animals that lie in wait for prey, for example, a lion, a tiger, a lynx, do not have such long legs like those who run. Relatively long legs in predators chasing prey, such as the wolf and cheetah.

Jumping mammals - hare, jerboa, kangaroo have long strong hind legs and shortened, weaker front legs.

In kangaroos, the weak front legs have lost their support value when landing after a jump. But developed a long tail on which, during slow movement, the animal leans, and during large jumps, it plays the role of a balancer and a rudder.

Land-arboreal mammals live in forests and are associated with tree-spring-shrub vegetation. They make nests in trees and feed both on the ground and in trees. These animals have an elongated, strong and flexible body, shortened limbs, armed with sharp claws.

Rice. 218. Animals leading different image life: 1 - protein; 2- Noble deer; 3 - bat; 4 - badger; 5 - mole; 6 - wild boar; 7- fur seal; 8 - dolphin

This group includes pine marten, sable, squirrel, chipmunk. Many small terrestrial-arboreal species have a well-developed tail with long spinous hairs, which facilitates gliding jumps. The flying squirrel has a leathery fold on the sides of the body, which improves gliding capabilities.

Soil mammals are adapted to a burrowing lifestyle. Many species spend most of their time underground, rarely appearing on the surface.

The body of shrews is short, valky, the cervical region is invisible, the tail is reduced. The fur is short, dense, without guard hairs, the legs are short with strong muscles and big claws. The auricles are reduced. Vision is poorly developed, and in some underground animals (for example, in a mole rat), the eyes are hidden under the skin. The sense of smell and touch are well developed in shrews. The mole digs the earth with strong, outward-turning spade-shaped forelimbs and pushes the earth to the surface with its head. The mole rat digs the ground with large, protruding incisors.

Flying mammals have fully mastered the air environment - they have adapted to flight. This group includes representatives of the order Chiroptera. Their forelimbs are turned into mobile wings. The flying membrane is stretched between the strongly elongated bones of the hand of the forelimb, the trunk, the hind limb, and even the tail. In fast-flying animals, for example, in the red evening, the wings are long and narrow; in slow-flying ears, they are wide and blunt. In connection with flight, the pectoral muscles are well developed in bats, which, like in birds, are attached to the sternum keel and wing bones. The bats catch insects in the air. Some of them, like birds, make seasonal migrations: fly to warm areas for wintering. All bats have well-developed hearing organs with large auricles that provide echolocation.

Aquatic and semi-aquatic mammals - cetaceans and pinnipeds - are typical aquatic animals. Whales have completely lost contact with land. They have a streamlined fish-like body, the head merges with the body: the cervical region is absent. The caudal fin serves as the organ of movement. The forelimbs, modified into flippers, act as rudders. The hind limbs are reduced. The auricles have disappeared, the external auditory canal is closed, the nasal openings are closed with valves, there is no coat. Well developed subcutaneous fat, providing thermal insulation. In connection with feeding on planktonic organisms, baleen whales lost their teeth and developed a special filtering apparatus, consisting of numerous horny plates, the so-called whalebone.

Pinnipeds spend most of their lives in the water. However, they have not lost touch with the land: they come out onto land, to rookeries, during the breeding season.

Pinnipeds have two pairs of flippers that take part in movement in the water. The coat is reduced, although the cubs are born covered with thick fur. A thick layer of subcutaneous fat plays a thermally insulating role.

Mammals leading semi-aquatic image life, belong to different systematic groups, use different food. However, they have common features in connection with a semi-aquatic lifestyle: the limbs are equipped with swimming membranes, the tail in the water acts as a rudder, the coat is well developed, there is a thick warm undercoat. Animals leading a semi-aquatic lifestyle carefully take care of the wool: they disassemble, comb, lubricate with the oily secretion of the skin glands. Mammals that lead a semi-aquatic lifestyle include the platypus, muskrat, beaver, otter, muskrat, etc. They swim and dive perfectly in water, move freely on land, although they are noticeably inferior in speed to typical terrestrial animals.

Among terrestrial, soil, aquatic, semi-aquatic and flying animals there are representatives of different orders and families. They have similar adaptive (adaptive) features to similar habitat conditions, they form separate ecological groups.

Lesson learned exercises

1. List the main ecological groups of animals. Specify the main representatives of each of them.
2. What common features in external structure and behavior possess running and jumping mammals of open spaces?
3. What are the features of adaptations to a tree-climbing lifestyle in animals using several examples.
4. What is characteristic of burrowing animals? Verify with examples.
5. What are the common features of aquatic mammals?

Otters are predatory animals of the mustelid family, leading an aquatic lifestyle. In nature, there are 17 species of otters. The closest relatives to these animals are sea otters, sometimes called sea otters.

Eastern clawless otter (Aonyx cinerea).

In general, otters are not very large animals: the body length in most species does not exceed 1 m, and the weight is 10-12 kg. The exception is the giant otter from South America, whose body length can reach up to 1.5 m and weight up to 30 kg! Otters have a characteristic appearance for all mustelids: a very elongated, flexible body, short paws with tenacious claws, a short neck and a flattened head with small ears. Their tail is also long and muscular. Otters have small but sharp teeth. Distinctive feature of these animals are swimming membranes on their paws. The fur of all otter species is very short and extremely thick. Such fur does not let water through and is highly valued. The color of all species of otters is brown with a lighter throat and abdomen.

Otters live on all continents except Australia. These animals are very closely connected with water and settle along the banks of rivers with a gentle current. However, the cat otter from South America prefers the sea coasts, and the African Congolese otter settles in mountain rivers with a stormy current. Most often, otters live in burrows, sometimes they occupy caves near the water or make a den in reed beds. All otters live alone except for short period when the female is raising the young. Only giant otters form permanent family groups of 10-15 individuals. Otters occupy permanent sites, which are marked and guarded against the intrusion of neighbors. In case of a lack of food, otters can wander, for example, an ordinary otter can travel 10-15 km per day in winter, which is a lot for an animal with such short legs.

An otter jumping into the water.

All species of otters feed mainly on fish, sometimes supplementing it with crustaceans, molluscs, bird eggs or terrestrial rodents. These animals are quite voracious and spend a lot of time in search of food. In the water, otters are unusually dexterous: they swim fast, dive deep and can hold their breath for several minutes. Under water, these animals move like loaches, bending the body, tumbling and capsizing. Not a single fish can resist the dexterity of otters! Otters are such successful hunters that when they are full they often catch fish for play - then they release it, then they catch it again.

The otter eats its prey.

In the absence of fish, otters love to tumble in the river and, in general, spend a lot of time in the water, even clean themselves there. Otters devote a lot of time to their toilet, because its heat-conducting properties depend on the purity of their fur. otters temperate zone are not afraid of frost and even at low temperatures dive into the water.

An otter on the ice of the river eats a mined mollusk.

Otters breed once a year, usually the breeding season is in the spring (in northern species) or the beginning of the rainy season (in African otters).

A pair of otters

In common and other temperate otters, an interesting phenomenon is observed: after fertilization, the development of the embryo stops (this is called the latent, that is, the latent phase), and then continues again.

Baby otter.

The duration of the latent period can be up to 270 days! Thus, the female can bring offspring in January and April next year. There are 2-4 cubs in a brood. They are born blind and helpless, they see clearly only after a month. Young long time stay with their mother, mastering the difficult art of water hunting.

Depending on the area where one or another species of otter lives, its enemies can be wolves, crocodiles, jaguars or predator birds, which can catch an otter that has moved away from the river. But the main enemy of otters is hunger. A dexterous otter can catch any fish, but is helpless in the face of its absence. Therefore, these animals are found only in remote and untouched corners of nature, where the proximity of people and water pollution do not undermine fish stocks. In general, otters suffered greatly from the hand of man. The otter's unique fur, considered the world's most wearable (durable) fur, has made these animals the object of an insatiable hunt. In many places, the populations of this animal are undermined by fishing, and some species of otters are on the verge of extinction. The situation is aggravated by the fact that, due to the specifics of their biology, it is impossible to breed otters in captivity on an industrial scale (like minks, for example), although these animals are very smart and easily tamed. Only widespread protection can save these wonderful animals.

The content of the article:

From time to time, it happens to every person that, in truth, an obsession about an institution comes to mind pet. You might think that there is absolutely nothing surprising in this, but not in the era of our modernity. Today, people have come to the point that they choose their pets much more closely and carefully than cars, real estate or an outfit for an evening in honor of some very significant event. And all because the concept of "pet" has expanded beyond recognition. And if a few years ago any person expressed his surprise or admiration rare breed dogs, today it is rather difficult to surprise him even with a raccoon or some original amphibian.

Probably, among your environment there is not a single person who would not visit the zoo at least once in his life. Walking around such an amazing, but at the same time a little sad place, many people have a desire to bring some recently seen, peculiar animal to their home. And if earlier it was a practically unattainable goal, today it is not only quite realistic, but not at all difficult - there would be a desire and a sufficient amount of material resources.

One of these somewhat exotic pets is the otter. If you have such an opportunity to contemplate this pretty miracle of nature live, then there is a high probability that you will return to your home already with the thought or even with a dream to have such an unusual animal. The thing is that such living creatures as otters have some special charm, watching her behavior, how she plays, and simply for the majesty and beauty of her appearance, you are already starting to involuntarily become attached to this animal.

Such a living creature as an otter is quite suitable for the role of a friend of your smaller one, but, only, in no case should you forget that this is a native of wildlife and there are quite a few different nuances and features in its content. Therefore, before taking your savings and going in search of such a coveted comrade, it is better to get to know her better.

Native territories and origins of the otter

In 1758, the world was presented with an amazing, hitherto unknown, creature, which received the name otter. But this fact remains very doubtful, since according to some sources, this beautiful creation of nature was very often tamed and kept as pets, along with cats or dogs, even in the distant Middle Ages. So there is a story about a baby otter, whose name was Neptune. Neptune first lived in the house of a famous Polish marshal, and in 1686 such an amazing friend was presented to His Majesty the King and very soon became a favorite among all royal family, moreover, Neptune was considered much smarter and smarter than even the smartest dogs at the king's court.

If we talk about the origin of the otter, then the people who studied it classified it into the class of mammals, the order of carnivores, the family of mustelids and the genus of the same name of otters.

In nature, there are about thirty various kinds these cute mammals, including those that, unfortunately, did not survive to our century, depending on the specific species of the animal, their natural distribution area also varies.

Description of otter species and their characteristic features

common otter, river otter or piston. This is perhaps the most popular and well-known representative of all his great kind. In order to look at this eccentric, you do not have to travel too far, since the piston is quite widespread almost throughout Russia, with the exception of only Far North. In addition, she feels great on the lands of Europe, she does not settle only in Holland and Switzerland, Asia and even the northern part of the African continent.

It prefers to choose rivers in wooded areas as its permanent habitat, since it is there that there is rarely a shortage of fish, much less often it is possible to meet it in small ponds or lakes. Sometimes an otter can live on sea ​​coasts. A sign of quality when choosing a place of residence for this original representative of the marten family is the presence of a pool in the river, washed-up waters, banks with windbreaks, where it is possible to build a reliable shelter or dig a comfortable mink. If there were no such conditions, then this eccentric can calmly settle down in a cave, arranging a cozy place to sleep there, a bit reminiscent of a nest, and in vegetation near water bodies. In the event that an animal settles either in water or not far from it, the entrance “door” to its house will always be under the cover of water.

The common otter belongs to those species of animals that lead a semi-aquatic lifestyle, of course, it spends most of its free time at the depth of the reservoir, as it is famous for its unsurpassed talents for swimming and diving, but it can also quite calmly walk along the river bank.

By its nature, this mammal is very persistent and hardy, during the period of winter colds, when food is a little tight, this daredevil resorts to nomadism, while he can easily walk a distance of more than 20 km per day through snowy and icy waters, in search of food .

The basis of the diet of this inhabitant of the waters is fish, he especially likes carp, pike, trout, roach and even gobies, prefers to hunt small fish. In winter, she doesn’t really have to show off, so the otter easily eats a variety of frogs. AT summer time Poreshnya can afford to slightly diversify its daily menu with rodents that live near water bodies, as well as waders and ducks.

River otters do not really like big noisy companies, even if they are their closest relatives, therefore they live mostly in splendid isolation.

Start mating season in this species of predators, it falls approximately at the beginning of spring, when the winter cold is already behind, but in some areas, mating can last throughout the year. The mating process takes place in the water. In such unusual animals as the otter, even pregnancy is not an ordinary phenomenon, the thing is that during this wonderful period it is divided into two parts - latent, the duration of which is approximately 250–270 days and the gestation period itself, it is not so long and last only 58-65 days. At the end of this period, from 2 to 5 cubs are born, who still do not have the opportunity to see the world with their eyes.

If we talk about such a representative of the world fauna as a river otter, then one cannot but mention its amazing appearance. This is a rather rather big animal, the length of its beautiful body is approximately 60–95 cm, the tail process is 30–50 cm. The body weight ranges from 6 to 12 kg. The body of the piston is distinguished by a very elegant and graceful flexibility, it is slightly elongated, and if we look at the animal closely, it seems that its body has a peculiar streamlined shape.

The limbs are relatively short, each of them has swimming membranes. As for the tail, although it is long and with well-developed muscles, it does not differ in large and abundant fluffiness, the hair growing on it is very thick, but short.

Nature painted this living creature very gracefully - the upper side of the body is presented in dark brown shades, the bottom is lighter, even with a slight silvery sheen. The texture of the otter's fur is very delicate and soft, in addition, the expression "like water off a duck's back" very accurately characterizes this miracle of nature, since its fur never gets wet.

Asiatic or Eastern clawless otter. This representative of the genus of otters differs from all other relatives, the most miniature size. The small body of this mammal is also elongated, short legs, while the forelimbs are slightly shorter than the hind ones. Due to the fact that the body of this otter is relatively short, it looks much thicker than that of its other relatives.

Her head is wide, flat with a slightly rounded muzzle, on which round, high-set eyes flaunt. The visual organs are located very close to each other, thanks to this, her muzzle is very pretty. The ears are small and also not devoid of features - while diving, the auditory openings are immediately closed with peculiar membranes.

From other subspecies of otters, this Asian beauty is also distinguished by the structure of the paws. The front legs are a bit like a brush and are only partially equipped with swimming membranes. fingers eastern otter uses to keep its prey.

The coloration of this pretty predator is not uniform, most of the fur cover is decorated in dark brown colors, but the throat, chin and cheeks are presented in a beautiful beige-cream color scheme.

In length, this living creation of nature grows no more than 60 cm, the length of the tail process varies from 22 to 35 cm. The body weight is approximately 2.5–5.5 kg.

These delightful representatives of the world fauna revere Indonesia as their homeland, southern part China, India, Philippines and some other parts of Asia. In their native lands, clawless otters settle near mangrove, less often freshwater swamps.

Watching this eastern predator on its territory is a truly breathtaking sight. By nature, they are very funny and friendly creatures, and at a time when otters are not busy looking for food or eating directly, they usually play, both with each other and on their own. In addition, on a clear sunny day, animals can simply lie down and sunbathe, comfortably sitting on the rocks near the reservoir.

Since these animals have almost no claws, they are able to dig a hole only in very soft soil, if there is none, then they settle down in the houses of other animals.

These animals have a very peculiar way of obtaining food, usually they carefully look for their dinner, probing every centimeter of the bottom, just like a raccoon does. The diet of the eastern predator consists of various amphibians, lobsters, mollusks, snails, crabs and other small inhabitants of water bodies. Before starting a meal, an otter must necessarily break its prey into small pieces, only then can it send it into its mouth.

No matter how cute and funny this fluffy comrade may seem to you, keeping him in your home is a very troublesome and responsible business. To begin with, it should be noted that buying this animal is only worth it if you live in a private house with your own yard, since an otter in an apartment is unlikely to bring you much pleasure. Although this animal is well tamed, it can even be taught to pee in a tray with filler, but the waste products of this pet have such bad smell that no matter how often you clean up after her - "ambre" in the apartment cannot be avoided. So it is better for the otter to allocate a rather spacious private aviary.

In your new friend's personal home, there must be a pool, the size of which will allow your pet not only to plunge into the water, but also to swim a little. Near such an artificial reservoir, it is necessary to make a place where the animal could dry itself after bathing; as the latter, a large box with some kind of hygroscopic filler in the form of dry sand, peat, sawdust, or simply dry dust of trees is well suited.

It is very important for the comfort of your pet otter to have a shelter in which this comrade will rest. Such a bedroom should be made of dense materials, its size should correspond to the maximum parameters of your friend's body, it is impossible that the walls of such a house hamper the movements of the animal. It is good to line the bottom of the shelter with something dry and soft, such as hay or sawdust.

But among other things, perhaps the most important condition for the happy existence of this exotic at home is a properly selected diet for your jerk. At home, this native of the wild must be fed a little differently than in his usual conditions. So much of the weekly menu domestic predator is meat, the rest is fish. It is optimal to feed your comrade with lean meats, the fish on the vydryach menu should be both herbivorous and predatory, in addition, you can offer him eggs, milk, butter, as well as amphibians, which you can buy on the market without much difficulty and high costs. On average, the weight of an otter's daily lunch should not be less than 800-1000 grams.

Do not forget also from time to time to feed your original pupil with special vitamin and mineral complexes, as a constant source of calcium, small pieces of chalk can be placed in the pet's enclosure, or crushed eggshells can be added to food.

In no case do not forget about vaccines, usually these animals are vaccinated against the same diseases as dogs.

Having made some efforts in order to create the most comfortable and comfortable conditions living and giving him your attention, as a result you will get a very playful, cheerful and funny friend who will look forward to your return home with great impatience. And soon your friends and acquaintances will come to visit you more often to be able to admire this truly natural wonder.

Acquisition of an animal, price of an otter

Buying any pet- a responsible matter, and if it concerns a native of open nature, then here you need to show maximum attention and patience, otherwise you risk spending your money in a completely different way than you planned. If you have found a suitable animal, do not hesitate to ask the seller for all the documents you are interested in that would testify to the origin of the animal and carefully check their authenticity, because you may have an animal forcibly torn from the wild by poachers, and documents are not so difficult fake. Firstly, such a pet can be infected with many diseases, secondly, they are much more difficult to adapt to captivity, and most importantly, you will make an irreparable contribution to the destruction of the otter population on the planet, they already suffer enough because of their valuable fur, which is sewn into fur coats, and they themselves are mercilessly killed.

The average cost of such a cute four-legged friend as a river otter ranges from 70,000 to 300,000 rubles, as for the Asian otter, the price for such an animal starts from 210,000 rubles.

What an otter looks like, see the following video:

The river otter is called European or common. This animal of the weasel family is a predatory mammal. Otters can be found not only in water, but also on land. In the European part of the continent, this animal in a single form represents a group of "semi-aquatic predatory mammals from the weasel family." Otter habitats are rivers and lakes with fresh water. The otter is a fairly large animal. The length of her body is from 55 to 95 centimeters, she weighs about ten kilograms.

Since the animal leads a semi-aquatic lifestyle, it has some external differences: it is flexible, highly elongated, subtle body, the tail, the length of which is almost half the length of the body, short paws, making the otter outwardly squat, there are swimming membranes between the fingers. The small, narrow and flattened head is quite long neck. The otter has small, rounded ears, and its eyes are directed forward and upward. When the animal is in the water, its ear canals are closed by flaps.

The coat of the otter is not long, but at the same time there is a very thick down. Her fur is shiny, rather coarse, close to the body, Brown slightly lighter on the belly than on the back. In winter, the animal's fur is longer than in summer. There is no wool on the feet and hands.

Habitats. Lifestyle and nutrition.

The freshwater otter lives in almost the entire European part, except for Switzerland and the Netherlands, and is also found in Asia and North Africa. In Russia, it cannot be found only in the Far North.

As mentioned above, this animal leads a semi-aquatic lifestyle. otters excellent divers and swimmers, as they have to feed in the water. Most often, the otter can be seen in forest rivers, in which there are a lot of fish, and less often - on the shores of lakes. For their dwelling, otters prefer rivers with whirlpools and rapids, which are not covered with ice in winter, or shores washed by water, where there are windbreaks and places for holes. Sometimes otters choose coastal caves for housing or build something like a nest near the water. However, it is worth noting that the entrance to its hole is always under water.

Each otter has its own places for hunting, it can be a stretch of water from two to eighteen kilometers and about a hundred meters deep into the coastal zone. In winter, when there are few fish, the stocks run out, the polynyas are covered with ice, the animal is forced to look for food elsewhere. Sometimes they have to travel long distances. If there is a slope on its way, the otter slides down from it on its belly, leaving a trace resembling a gutter. In a day, the animal is able to walk up to twenty kilometers on ice and snow.

The otter is distinguished by secrecy and caution, especially at a time when it is forced to be on land. Before leaving the reservoir, she carefully examines the nearby space, and masks the place of landfall with branches and a fin. Having come out on land, the beast always goes along the shore, only if necessary it starts swimming. On the water, the otter moves with the flow, and if a rift or threshold occurs on the way, it bypasses them on land. This animal, walking along the coast against the current, knows how to find a short path, unmistakably finding the narrowest place of the bends. On each path of its passage there is a section in which the otter runs quickly without stopping. Having reached the reservoir, she dives into the water directly from the path, and if the coast is steep, she slides down on her belly. The ways of an otter are different from the ways river beavers. The path of the otter always goes along the coast, not moving away from the water, and the beavers walk perpendicular to the coast. And the trace of an otter cannot be confused with any other. In its tracks, one can clearly see the impressions of the membranes, and between the tracks of the paws, a trail of a trailing tail.

The otter is very mobile and has a playful disposition, especially she likes to roll down from different elevations. Moreover, adult animals, like their cubs, love to slide off steep banks and flop into the water. The places of their games can be identified by polished slopes, the height of which can reach up to twenty meters. In winter, their games change a little, the otters scatter and then slide on their belly two or three meters in the snow. It is clear that after that a trace remains in the snow, similar to a gutter. Most likely, this is not just fun, but a necessity, since in this way the otter squeezes moisture out of the fur.

The animal feeds on fish. On the Volga, she hunts carp and pike, she does this in channels with stagnant water and reeds. AT northern rivers its food is the graylings that live on the riffles. In the Murmansk rivers, the subject of her hunting is trout and cod, and on the Kola Peninsula, the predator catches trout and pike. But at the same time, her preference, nevertheless, is a small fish, therefore, in spawning places, she devours fry with pleasure.

The otter is not a paired animal. As a rule, mating occurs in early spring, always in the water. The bearing by the female of her cubs, together with the latent period, is about two hundred and seventy days, but the bearing itself is two months. As a rule, otter cubs are born from two to four. They are born blind. Individuals are considered sexually mature at about two years of age.

Otter - valuable fur. Otter hunting restrictions.

This animal has not only beautiful, but also very durable fur, the wear of which is one hundred percent. When processing fur, coarse hairs are plucked out, leaving a thick down. The most valuable is the otter fur that lives in Alaska. Fur coats made of otter fur can withstand about thirty seasons of wear, especially the fur of sea otters.

However, due to the uncontrolled hunting of these animals and wide application pesticides in agriculture population has declined significantly. In the year 2000, the otter was listed by the World Conservation Union as a vulnerable animal species. And in the Sverdlovsk region it was listed in the Red Book.

Otter hunting with a trap.

You can hunt otters different ways, but, most often, hunters use traps. It happens that an animal accidentally falls into a trap set for a beaver, since their paths and hunting grounds are the same. Specifically, setting a trap on an otter is quite difficult and few people know how to do it correctly.

Track traps

To begin with, at the beginning of autumn, reconnaissance of the territory near water bodies should be carried out and whether there are otters there. Most often, an otter can be found near beaver dam crossings, under cliffs, or near pools. On the wet ground of the shore, the five-toed footprints of the otter are clearly visible and easily distinguishable. And also in feeding places near dams, where there are a lot of fish, you can see their droppings.

This is where the traps should be set. Traps No. 3 and No. 5, which have a sim or plate alert, are well suited. Better, of course, the first, as it is more sensitive to pressure. This trap is triggered as soon as the paw of the animal steps on the trap, and a secure grip occurs. Do not forget that the trap you set must be tested. After purchasing the trap, carefully remove the grease from it and treat it as follows: put dry grass and leaves in a bucket, place the trap there and pour boiling water over it. Then there will be no odors left.

Traps on a floating log.

Such a trap can be set as follows: downstream, firmly install two stakes in the bottom of the reservoir, so that the distance between them is 3-4 meters. Attach a stump of a log or a board to the stakes with a wire, about a meter long, at least thirty centimeters wide, so that the log is between them. A trap is set on a log or board. To do this, a recess is made corresponding to the size of the trap. You should also take care to disguise the trap, for example, with dry algae or what you find on the shore.

So that an animal that has fallen into a trap does not leave with it, it must be firmly fixed with a chain or thick wire to the bracket, which must first be hammered into a log. To a peg that is upstream, tie a piece on a strong fishing line butter wrapped in clean gauze. An otter from afar will smell the oil and start looking for an object that exudes this aroma. She will swim up to the log and climb onto it, immediately falling into a trap. If she manages to jump into the water with a trap, she will die.

Traps in the otter's "latrine"

This is one of the most prey types of otter hunting. To apply it, you need to know interesting feature of this animal - in its habitat, the otter in several places arranges a kind of "latrines" that it visits daily. So, traps should be set on the paths, on the way to the "latrines". The trap must have a long chain - a leash or a strong wire, with which it is attached to a heavy stone or peg. The length of the leash should not allow the animal to drag the trap into the water.

Don't forget about disguise. In this case, sand is good. And it is better to use frame traps with a net of harsh threads or strong fishing line. It should be remembered that the otter is a strong animal with fairly muscular paws. Therefore, to hunt it, traps are needed that are durable and have a powerful spring.

Before you install a trap near the "lavatory", do not forget that you need to remove factory grease from it or, if it is old, remove rust. Heat its surface and rub it with wax, which will not only prevent rust, but also eliminate odors that can alert the animal. This type of otter hunting can only be used from the beginning of the hunting season until ice appears on the water.

Fish bait trap

This type of hunting is especially successful in winter fishing, during the period when the otter moves along the river under a layer of ice. The trap should be set in a hole. In winter, the otter leads a particularly secretive lifestyle, and finding its habitat is not easy. When there is a lot of snow, the animal rarely approaches the surface, making its way under the ice layer from one between polynyas. If the otter is lucky and finds a polynya with an abundance of fish, then it may well stay there for several days. At the same time, the animal may not come to the surface, devouring prey right in the polynya.

In winter, the otter can be found by the holes it makes in the snow. Cautiously making his way under the ice, the animal comes to the surface, breaking through the thick snow with its strong body. Sticking its head out of the snow, the otter looks around, and then again sinks under the ice. After that, a hole remains in the snow - an outlet, round in shape, with a diameter of about twelve centimeters. In places of vents, it is worth carefully examining the polynyas. If you notice otter droppings, fish or frog bones, and footprints webbed feet, which means that here it is necessary to set a trap. Even if the animal has already left this place, it will definitely return to it in a few days.

For this type of hunting, both frame and plate traps with teeth on arcs No. 3 and No. 5 are suitable. The trap is placed in the water, at a depth of thirty centimeters to the bottom. For bait, you should take only fresh fish, for example, medium-sized burbot - the most favorite food for otters. A fish in a frame trap is attached with a strong thread passed through its belly to a tailor or simply tied with a thread with a fish to the frame and guard of the trap.

In plate traps, the bait is fixed to the plate, so that the head of the fish is directed against the current. In this case, it looks like a living fish that stands still, moving its tail and fins. Also, you can use frogs for bait if you prepare them in the fall. The animal, seeing the bait, makes a swift throw to it and falls headlong into the trap.

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The otter is a semi-aquatic animal and a real thunderstorm of fish. She swims and dives beautifully, which makes it easy to keep up with any large and small fish.

Once this beast inhabited almost the entire globe in places where fish were found. The only exceptions were Antarctica, Australia and some islands in the extreme South and North. Otters were common representatives of the river fauna of Europe, Asia, America and North Africa. But people saw them as competitors in catching fish, as well as northern peoples appreciated their waterproof fur. Otters were so mercilessly destroyed that today it is a great success to see the animal in their former habitats. Only in Alaska and Siberia they can be found everywhere.

Places where different types of otters live

The most famous and widespread European otter, or common river otter, inhabits North Africa, Europe (besides Switzerland and the Netherlands) and Asia, not meeting only on the Arabian Peninsula.

In South America, there is a record-breaking otter for length and weight among representatives of the subfamily - giant, or. The length of her body without a tail reaches 150 cm, the tail is 70 cm long, and her body weight is about 30 kg. The main difference between the giant otter and other relatives is its flattened tail. Brazilian otters live in small family groups in quiet rivers: Amazon and Orinoco. They communicate with each other with different sounds. To notify the family of their presence, otters scream sharply and emerge from the water.

Three more species of the otter subfamily inhabit the Central and South America, these are: southern, long-tailed and cat otter. The Canadian otter lives in North America, which differs from the common otter only large size and the structure of the skull. The Canadian otter can weigh up to 14 kg.

In sub-Saharan Africa, the variegated, white-throated, or spotted otter lives; in Indochina and the Malay Archipelago, the Sumatran otter, in South-East Asia- Indian otter. Also in these parts of the world you can see different types clawless otters.

otter dwelling

Otters spend most of their lives in the water looking for food. But to breed and rest after have a hard day come out on land. Otters live in burrows near the shores of the reservoir in which they live. The otter builds its dwelling in such a way that it can immediately get into the water from it.