The otter is a native of the greater part of Europe and America. Its
principal food being fish, it makes its habitation on the banks of
rivers, where it burrows to some depth.
_Anecdotes._--The females produce from four to five at a birth. Their
parental affection is so powerful, that they will frequently suffer
themselves to be killed rather than quit their progeny; and this has
frequently been the occasion of their losing their lives, when they
might, otherwise, have escaped. Professor Steller says, "Often have I
spared the lives of the female otters, whose young ones I took away.
They expressed their sorrow by crying like human beings, and followed
me as I was carrying off their young ones, which called to them for
aid, with a tone of voice which very much resembled the wailing of
children. When I sat down in the snow, they came quite close to me, and
attempted to carry off their young. On one occasion, when I had
deprived an otter of her progeny, I returned to the place eight days
after, and found the female sitting by the river, listless and
desponding; she suffered me to kill her on the spot without making any
attempt to escape. On skinning her, I found she was quite wasted away,
from sorrow for the loss of her young. Another time I saw, at some
distance from me, an old female otter sleeping by the side of a young
one, about a year old. As soon as the mother perceived us, she awoke
the young one, and enticed him to betake himself to the river; but, as
he did not take the hint, and seemed inclined to prolong his sleep, she
took him up in her fore paws and plunged him into the water."
The otter is naturally ferocious; but when taken young, and properly
treated, it can be rendered tame, and taught to catch fish, and fetch
them to its master. James Campbell, near Inverness, procured a young
otter, which he brought up and domesticated. It would follow him
wherever he chose; and, if called on by its name, would immediately
obey. When apprehensive of danger from dogs, it sought the protection
of its master, and would endeavor to spring into his arms for greater
security. It was frequently employed in catching fish, and would
sometimes take eight or ten salmon in a day. If not prevented, it
always made an attempt to break the fish behind the anal fin, which is
next the tail; and, as soon as one was taken away, it always dived in
pursuit of more. It was equally dexterous at sea-fishing, and took
great numbers of young cod, and other fish, there. When tired, it would
refuse to fish any longer, and was then rewarded with as much as it
could devour. Having satisfied its appetite, it always coiled itself
round, and fell asleep; in which state it was generally carried home.
It appears that the otter, in its native haunts, is of a playful and
sportive humor. We are told that, on the banks of the northern rivers,
where they dwell unmolested, they may be sometimes seen sliding down
the soft, muddy banks into the water, like a parcel of boys coasting
upon the snow. They become quite animated with the sport, seeming to
emulate each other in the vigor and frolic of their performances.
The sea otter is a larger species, living in pairs along the northern
shores of the Pacific Ocean.