This
Month in Yellowstone
River Otters
Otter Pups Play after Eating a Fish Dinner - © 2004 Bob Landis
While filming a river otter family on Trout Creek on November 6,
Bob Landis observed a fishing lesson, as well as grooming, and play
activities.
The mother otter is a good provider. First she catches a longnose
sucker and takes it to one of the pups who relishes dining on it.
Then she catches a large cutthrout trout. Rather than bringing it
up on shore to eat it, she brings it into the shallows and gives it
to one of the pups. The pup holds the trout for a few seconds before
loosing its grip on the fish. The trout swims across the river in
an attempt to escape and both the pup and mother give chase. The mother
catches the trout again and brings it back to the shallows. There
the pup nearly looses it again before the trout is hauled up on the
bank where everyone in the family eats. In this way, adult river otters
teach pups how to fish.
After eating, the mother grooms the pup and in doing so improves
the waterproof nature of its thick under-fur. It is very important
for an otter’s fur to be waterproof since they will be required
to fish in 33-degree (F) water when air temperatures are well below
zero.
On another occasion the mother otter brings a fish to one of the
pups who eagerly eats it while swimming. This time when the fish gets
away, the pup swims after it and retrieves it all by itself.
We often think of river otters as playful animals. When they do play
they are exceedingly fun to watch. For that reason, there has been
a lot of video and film shot of otters while they are playing. In
fact, they only played for a few minutes while Bob watched, but of
course, he filmed the playful activities when they arose.
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