Species File: Exploring India’s biodiversity, one species at a time.
A recent survey has found evidence of a significant smooth coated-otter population in Mettur dam and Kaveri river stretches of Salem district in Tamil Nadu. Local fishers and residents reported the presence of more than 1,000 otters in the region.
Otters are semi-aqautic mammals found in rivers, wetlands, and mangroves. Their sleek bodies and webbed feet make them expert swimmers and efficient predators of fish and other aquatic animals, helping regulate prey populations and maintain ecosystem health. They also have whiskers that are sensitive.
Of the 13 global otter species, three are found in India. The smooth-coated otter (Lutrogale perspicillata) is the most widely distributed, found in all major river systems south of the Himalayas. The Asian small-clawed otter (Aonyx cinereus), the world’s smallest otter species, lives in high-elevation streams of the Western Ghats, the Himalayan foothills, and parts of Northeast India. The Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) is more elusive and solitary than the other two, and is found in the Himalayas through to the northeast, as well as parts of the Western Ghats and central India.
Population estimates for otters in India are difficult to determine, given how little the species has been studied. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the smooth-coated otter is listed as vulnerable, based on ongoing population declines driven by habitat loss and hunting pressure. The Asian small-clawed otter is also listed as vulnerable, while the Eurasian otter is classified as near threatened. In India, all three otter species are protected under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
Otters face multiple pressures, including river pollution, dam construction that alters river systems, and conflict with fisherfolk. The greatest threat, however, is poaching for fur and body parts.
In an earlier story that Mongabay-India published in 2024, Katrina Fernandez, director of Wild Otters Research and co-author of a 2016 TRAFFIC report, said, “The otters are relentlessly hunted for their body parts. In the 2000s, otter skins made up around 30 percent of the fur trade in India, of which China was the largest consumer.”
Read more about otters in our stories on filming an otter family on the Kaveri, community-based otter conservation in Maharasthra, and poaching pressures in the northeast.
Banner image: Smooth-coated otters. Image by Anirnoy via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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