Otters
Aonyx cinerea
Otters are a subfamily of large carnivorous mammals of the family Mustelidae. There are 13 species of otters over 7 genera, one with an almost worldwide distribution of the population. In Mundomar have a colony of otters dwarfs Asian Short-clawed otters (Aonyx cinerea), typical of East Asia.
Species
Aonyx cinerea
Order
Carnivora
Family
Mustelidae
Danger of Extinction
Amenazada (vulnerable)
Features
They are animals who feel more comfortable in the water than on land. They have a thick waterproof coat that allows them to keep the heat from your body. Great swimmers and can close their nostrils under water, I can stay under water up to 6 minutes without surfacing to breathe.
Execute a graceful movement of legs and tail up and down when moving through the water at high speed. Just use their forelimbs when swimming slowly. In the water can reach speeds up to 12 km / h.
Customs, food and habitat:
They feed exclusively on fish that hunt in groups of two to five individuals. They live in family groups usually the players, almost puppies and adults. The latter assist in raising the pups but not played up to leave the family group. The Spanish conquistadors were dubbed “river wolves”.
Attributed to this animal tool use as they take a stone from the bottom of the sea and swimming place it face up on his chest and hit the mussels to split them, in addition to primates, being the only mammals that use some kind of “tool “. It is an endangered animal in so many places hunting is prohibited. Their natural predator is the orca.
Curiosities
Otters have her in heat at any time of year; however, playback is slow and irregular but larger number of births observed during spring. From each of them can be two or three pups are born blind and toothless. Your breastfeeding is about two months, leaving the maternal territory after about a year, when they begin to wander in search of their own territory, to be effective after about two years of being born.