FOR AGES 3 YEARS TO 18 YEARS
At Kidadl we pride ourselves on offering families original ideas to make the most of time spent together at home or out and about, wherever you are in the world. We strive to recommend the very best things that are suggested by our community and are things we would do ourselves - our aim is to be the trusted friend to parents.
We try our very best, but cannot guarantee perfection. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family.
Kidadl provides inspiration to entertain and educate your children. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate and suitable for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability.
Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
Do you want to identify the smallest otter in the world? Let's make your search easy. Out of the 13 otter species, the Asian small-clawed otters are the smallest. Its weight is 10 lb (4.5 kg), and its body length is 2 ft (61 cm). The tail is 10-14 in long.
The Aonyx cinereus are social animals. The group members communicate using more than 12 distinct calls and utter various shrieks and moans. Searching for food is done at the coastline or shallow water areas. They often walk around with their paws. The teeth are well arranged for a varied diet like shellfish. The captive Aonyx cinereus living in the zoo are found to leave the shellfish out in the sun; the heat causes the shellfish to open. In this way, they can consume their prey like shellfish.
The oriental small-clawed otter is considered endangered because of its hunting, habitat loss, and pollution. Read up on them below. Also, find out about otters and river otters.
The Oriental small-clawed otter or Aonyx cinerea is the smallest of the otter species and is usually active after dark. This otter species rows with the help of their forelimbs when swimming on the surface of the water. It does paddling with the hind limbs. When diving under the water, they move up and down with the help of their tail and body.
The Asian small-clawed otter family is Mustelidae, and it belongs to the class of mammals.
The exact population size of oriental small-clawed otters is not known. According to Woodland Park Zoo in the USA, they estimated that the total population size of the otter species is around 5000 otters. The oriental small-clawed otter is currently classified as Vulnerable.
The small-clawed otters live in freshwater wetlands like swamps, estuaries, meandering rivers, coastal lagoons, muddy banks, tidal ponds, and irrigated rice paddies. The small-clawed otters' native habitat comprises Southeast Asia. It ranges from Southern China to Southern India. In Southern China, they are found across the southern boundary. In Southern India, they are found in Karnataka, Palni, and Nilgiri hills in Tamil Nadu. The Aonyx cinereus is also found in the eastern part of India, like West Bengal, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh, and Assam. In Southeast Asia, they are found in Java, Borneo, Sumatra, and Palawan.
The Asian small-clawed otter habitat comprises swamps, wetlands, mangroves, tidal ponds, estuaries, rivers, forests, and grasslands. They like to adapt to a variety of aquatic habitats.
These otter species are known to make frequent visits to the rice paddies. They don't like open areas and often choose places with low to moderate vegetation coverage. They spend most of their time on the land. A burrow known as a holt is created near the side of a river or muddy banks. They usually like to live in good-quality water and natural habitats like near-flowing irrigated water fields, ponds, rice fields, and mangroves. You can trace them in different aquatic habitats.
The Aonyx cinereus are very social and live in groups or with their extended family group comprising 15 individuals. In Sundarbans, 53 otters were recorded in 13 locations within 351 km, with 1-12 individuals in each group.
The Asian small-clawed otter's lifespan is around 12 years in captivity or the zoo. Some otter species are found to live for up to 20 years in the zoo with proper care. However, its lifespan in the wild is unknown.
The Asian small-clawed otters start showing their breeding behavior when they are six months old. However, they get sexually matured only after one and a half years old. Successful reproduction of the Aonyx cinerea occurs when they are one and a half years old or three years old. Once matured, they can breed throughout the year. For breeding, they usually built burrows called holts near the side of the rivers. The estrous cycle of the females is for 28 days. The average gestation of the females is 60 days. After 60 days of gestation, the females give birth to around one to six pups. Usually, two litters are born every year with an eight or nine months gap.
The conservation status of Aonyx cinereus is Vulnerable as there has been a rapid population decline.
The small-clawed Asian otter's body has deep-brown fur. The backside of the body comprises reddish-brown fur and paler underneath. The side of the head and neck are brown. The upper lip, throat, neck, cheeks, and chin is whitish. The skull is short, and the rhinarium is rounded and without any fur. The snout has vibrissae on both sides, which help detect the motion of prey in the water. The Aonyx cinereus species comprises partially webbed claws, which is very helpful for swimming. They catch prey with their webbed claws.
The Aonyx cinereus species are very cute-looking creatures. They have dark brown fur and gray or white markings on the throat and face, oval ears, striking eyes, and short hairs. The webbed claws help them for swimming.
The Aonyx cinereus are vocal species and have 12 different vocalizations. The vocals are used for contacting, greeting, summons, threats, and alarm calls. These vocal signs can be chemical, visual, social grooming, posturing, or hormonal changes.
The Aonyx cinereus species also use scent markings for communication. Paired scent glands are found at the bottom of the tail. The otters emit an extremely pungent scent representing territorial marks and communication regarding their sex, identity, sexual responsiveness, and time of their visit to the same area based on their scent. It has been found that the oriental small-clawed otter species smudge their feces sites with their tail and hind feet. Extended family groups spread more feces than otter groups of three or fewer animals. The density of spreading their feces varies with location, which means that they have particular preferences for sites. The marking of sites with their feces often indicates territorial instincts and mostly likely smoothens the social ties within the extended family groups.
The Aonyx cinereus species are 28.7-37.8 in (73-96 cm) in body length. It is three times smaller than the giant otters.
The captive otters or otters in the zoo are known to swim at a speed of 2.3-3.9 ft/s (0.7-1.2 m/s).
Asian small-clawed otter weight is 6-7.7 lb (2.7-3.5 kg).
Aonyx cinereus males are called boars, and females are called sows.
Baby otters are known as pups. The pups open their eyes after 40 days. They begin to swim after 60 days and take solid food after 80 days. Also, the average weaning age of the pups is 80 days.
The small-clawed otters in the wild eat mollusks, Trichogaster fish, mudskippers, crabs, frogs, and crustaceans. Its diet or food eating habits vary according to season. When available, they also prey on snakes, insects, rats, catfish, and other paddy fields fish as their food.
The Aonyx cinereus feed on a meat diet called nature balance. The young ones feed on solid food only after 60 days of birth.
No, they are not dangerous to humans. The otters rarely attack humans. They are only territorial and protective of their babies.
The Aonyx cinereus would not make a good pet. They will never be happy if kept captive. An Asian small-clawed otter pet is mainly kept in vast open spaces. They are social animals and live in groups of up to 20. They also require the right amount of diet.
The otters have dense fur with around 450000 hairs per square inch.
The otters are found in every continent except Antarctica and Australia.
The otters close their nostrils and ears when swimming below the surface water.
Many otters have escaped from the zoo in England and established a population of their own in the wild.
The oriental small-clawed otter uses sandy banks or grassy areas for resting, grooming, and sunbathing. In marshy habitat areas, they often use islands.
Unlike other otters, Asian small-clawed otters are skilled animals. With its paws and partially webbed claws, it catches fish. In comparison, other otters use their mouth to grab a piece of fish. The paws of the Aonyx cinereus are also used to grab crabs, mollusks, and other small aquatic animals.
The Aonyx cinereus are rare species. The Asian small-clawed otter price is around $3000, or it could be higher. However, different dealers offer different prices. You can find them at a pet dealer shop.
They are illegal in the US, except in some states. You can keep them as pets with proper permission in Florida, Minnesota, and Indiana. But you can never keep an otter as a pet in Australia. Entry and export of exotic animals in Australia are strictly illegal.
If you have brought an otter as a pet, the best way to take care of your otter is to give them a home of their own. Make sure to provide them with enough land and water. In general, though, they prefer to be left in the wild.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other mammals including the beaver or European otter.
You can even occupy yourself at home by drawing one on our Asian small-clawed otter coloring pages.
Read The Disclaimer
At Kidadl we pride ourselves on offering families original ideas to make the most of time spent together at home or out and about, wherever you are in the world. We strive to recommend the very best things that are suggested by our community and are things we would do ourselves - our aim is to be the trusted friend to parents.
We try our very best, but cannot guarantee perfection. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family.
Kidadl provides inspiration to entertain and educate your children. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate and suitable for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability.
Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
Kidadl is independent and to make our service free to you the reader we are supported by advertising.
We hope you love our recommendations for products and services! What we suggest is selected independently by the Kidadl team. If you purchase using the buy now button we may earn a small commission. This does not influence our choices. Please note: prices are correct and items are available at the time the article was published.
Kidadl has a number of affiliate partners that we work with including Amazon. Please note that Kidadl is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.
We also link to other websites, but are not responsible for their content.
Was this article helpful?
We’ll send you tons of inspiration to help you find a hidden gem in your local area or plan a big day out.
Check your inbox for your latest news from us. You have subscribed to:
Remember that you can always manage your preferences or unsubscribe through the link at the foot of each newsletter.