River Otters

River otter is one of 13 species of otters. They are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. Lutrinae is a branch of the weasel family Mustelidae, which also includes badgers, honey badgers,martens, minks, polecats, weasels, and wolverines. This is the scientific classification of river otter:

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Clade: Synapsida

Class: MammaliaOrder: Carnivora
Suborder: Caniformia
Family: Mustelidae
Subfamily: Lutrinae

River otters can be found in many different places, but they are usually found in tropical places. They live in colonies. An otter's den is called a holt or couch. They usually made it under a tree or a rock beside a river. Otters usually live with their feces. The function of this feces is to mark their territorial area. They live beside a river because they can find food easily. Its diets are fishes, eels, snails, crabs, slugs, and any other animal around their holt. They find their food by swimming. River otters are active hunters, chasing prey in the water or searching the beds of rivers. Most species of otter live beside water, but river otters usually enter it only to hunt or travel.

River otters can grow up until 40 cm in length and 20 kg in weight. River otters have brown fur all around their body except under the neck, they have white fur. They have elastic, long, slim body, so they can move agile. Different from weasels that have long tail, river otters have a short flat tail. The function of their tail is to make them swim easily. They swim move is up down up down and so on. They have four feet with sharp claws. Different from sea otters, they have bare sole pads on the undersides. They have four canine teeth like any other carnivore animal. The function of their canine teeth are to tear flesh and for self defense against their enemies.

River otters are usually favored by people. This is hapenned because otters have cute face. They jump, run, and act very cute. They run after each other like playing 'touch touch'. But their physical characters fool us. They are actually naughty, mischievous animals. They usually disturb humans and other animals. They will chase us and bite us sometimes, but they bite with play meaning. So if there is an otter run after you, I suggested you not to run away. Because if we run away, otters will think that we are scared of them, so they will be more brave to approach us, they are just like dogs. They are also called as little thief. Somehow they can steal foods from any places that they can reach, just like cats. But beside that, some of them have a role to be a star in circus. They can bring a ball in their hands and throw it into a small basket ring. They can also walk like human with bringing things in their hands. They are so cute with their mini version human cloth. They can act selling things, waste something into trash, or dancing.

The population of river otters are decreasing. This is hapenned because there are many hunters that chase them. They are usually eaten or sent to the city to be sold as a pet, because river otters have a lot of lovers. We should conserve them by protect it from hunter in a protected forest or in a zoo. We can also multiply otters in our house. Once they grow up, we can release them in their habitat.

Question about otters
1. Why do people like to show otters as a circus performer?
A. Otters are really playful, their acts attract attention from the spectator.
B. Otters are very cute, they are really cute to watch.
C. Otters are smart animals, we can train them to do something.
D. Otters are weak enough to be forced to do something.
E. Otters are multitalent.

2. From the text above, we can conclude that...
A. River otters are really withdrawn.
B. River otters can live around swamp.
C. River otters can be an artist.
D. River otters’ swim move is resemble to dolphins’ move.
E. Otters are usually sold as a pet.

3. Why should we protect river otters?
A. To avoid extinction.
B. To sell them, so we have a lot of money.
C. We can eat them.
D. Their population are very little.
E. They are rare

4. The answers bellow are things that make otters swim easily, except…
A. All of otters have slim body, long, and elastic body.
B. All of otters have sole pads in each feet.
C. The move up down up down.
D. They move their flat tails.
E. The move of their feet.

5.