A few months back there was a discussion on an aquatic nuisance species list
about otters attacking swimmers in a lake. Apparently some kids were
splashing in the water and one girl was attacked and bitten by at least one
river otter. They've been implicated in game fish declines, but probably in
systems more artificial than natural.
When I was a kid growing up in Pittsburgh, I enjoyed going to the Aqua Zoo
more for the river otters than anything else. It was a great outdoor
exhibit with slides and such. Around that same time, I remember seeing that
movie about that tame otter in England but I can't remember the name of the
movie (Shine On, Shine Brightly or something like that; anyone recall?).
The ending was a sharp jolt of reality of conflicting views towards nature.
A farmer killed the otter with a shovel.
A few years back I was using a coded-wire tag detector which beeped when it
detected a tag in a salmon head. In a nearby slough was an adult otter and
a few young. When the detector beeped, the otter responded with a similar
sound. Apparently it thought the beep was one of her young calling. In
time she accounted for all her young and they all left for the river.
-- Jay DeLong Olympia, WA
/----------------------------------------------------------------------------- /"Unless stated otherwise, comments made on this list do not necessarily / reflect the beliefs or goals of the North American Native Fishes / Association" / This is the discussion list of the North American Native Fishes Association / nanfa_at_aquaria.net. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or get help, send the word / subscribe, unsubscribe, or help in the body (not subject) of an email to / nanfa-request_at_aquaria.net. For a digest version, send the command to / nanfa-digest-request_at_aquaria.net instead. / For more information about NANFA, visit our web page, http://www.nanfa.org