Asian Small-Clawed Otter Husbandry Manual (1998)

national parks and preserves. Indonesia in particular has an excellent system of protected areas thatcovers all the major habitat types and ecosystems. However, the main problem is in protecting theseareas from those activities of people that are incompatible with otter survival. National parks and otherprotected areas are prone to environmental disturbances outside their boundaries. Herein lies the cruxof the problem concerning the conservation of otters in Asia.With the exception of the sea otter, little is known about the natural behavior and ecology of the Asianotters, apart from the summaries in general field guides and mammalogy references like Medway(1978), Lekagul and McNeely (1977), Roberts, (1977), and Nowak and Paradiso (1983). Thisinformation is summarized below, as presented at the Fifth International Otter Colloquium (Foster-Turley in press).Asian Small-Clawed Otter--(Aonyx cinerea)The Asian small-clawed otter is the smallest of the world's otters, rarely weighing more than 5kilograms. A gregarious species, it is often seen in large groups of up to 15 animals (Furuyu, 1977),and captive studies suggest that these groups are composed of an alpha breeding pair and their offspringfrom successive litters (Foster-Turley and Engfer 1988). Asian small-clawed otters have unusual handlikefront paws with increased tactile sensitivity (Radinsky 1968) and reduced webbing, which they useto forage for their prey of crustaceans, mollusks, and small fish. Asian small-clawed otters are foundfrom Palawan (Philippines) through Indonesia, Southeast Asia, southern China, and westwards throughthe Himalayan foot-hills of Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal. A disjunct population occurs in southernIndia (see Figure 1).Smooth Otter-- (Lutra perspicillata)Smooth otters are so-named for their shorter, smoother coats, as compared to the similar-sizedsympatric Lutra species. From captive studies (Desai in press) this otter appears to be monogamousand is usually seen year-round in small family groups. . Although little is known about the ecology of thisspecies, it is known to occur in a variety of Asian habitats, from mangroves, to freshwater wetlands andlarge forested rivers. The smooth otter is distributed throughout southern Asia from Indonesia, throughSoutheast Asia, and westwards through southern China and India, with an isolated population in Iraq(see Figure 2). In most of its range it is sympatric with the Asian small-clawed otter and sometimes theother Lutra species. Of all the Asian otters, this one seems to be the most common through most of itsrange.Eurasian Otter--(Lutra lutra)The Eurasian otter has been well studied in Europe (Chanin 1985; Mason and Macdonald 1986a), butits ecology in Asia remains unknown. Eurasian otters are primarily fish-eaters, although they also eatother vertebrates and crustaceans. In Europe these otters tend to be solitary and generally at lowdensity when found in freshwater rivers and marshes, but are more numerous in coastal environmentswhere food is more plentiful. In Asia, they are very elusive and rare. They are especially susceptible tohuman-induced disturbances and thus occur mostly in higher altitude streams and other remote areas.The Eurasian otter is widely distributed throughout all of Eurasia from Western Europe to the NorthernPacific coast and South through Central and Southeast Asia (see Figure 3).Asian Small-Clawed Otter Husbandry Manual/Action Plan65