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You otter be careful
Wild animals can be cute, but they're still dangerous.
By STEPHANIE KILEY
© St. Petersburg Times,
published December 3, 2001
[Times files]
Florida otters have lost much of their habitat as suburbs encroach on the landscape and more boaters take to the waters.
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Florida otters -- cuddly, adorable and shy. They're sleek and fast in the water, and they can hold their breath for up to eight minutes. They sometimes share the waterways with swimmers, like on the Weeki Wachee River near Spring Hill, and that's the problem.
People find these furry aquatic acrobats almost irresistibly attractive, but that doesn't mean the interaction is good. That's why everyone is always lecturing kids about how horrible it is to feed wild animals, like otters.
Paula Blum, a biologist at the Florida Aquarium in Tampa, says otters are usually shy, but if you feed them, they can become aggressive. In May, it was reported that an otter killed a small dog and dragged it into a lake in a subdivision in New Port Richey. This most likely was caused by people having fed otters in that vicinity.
"I have so many stories about people who try to adopt otters as a pet," said Ms. Blum. "After they get out of the hospital, they call the closest zoo or aquarium" to come and pick up the animal. Yes, that's right, the hospital. It doesn't matter how good you are with animals; Florida otters can, and do, bite humans.
Actually, the otters that many of us have seen performing in shows at local attractions aren't Florida otters. Those are usually Asian otters, a smaller and less aggressive species. North American otters, however, can grow up to 4 feet long and weigh 25 pounds. Their normal diet is fish, crayfish, meat and sometimes birds. But, according to Ms. Blum, they'll gnaw on anything.
However, dogs are not a natural part of their diet. That type of attack is rare and could be due to "harsh, unnatural conditions such as starvation or disease," said Amanda Frazier, Florida mammals animal keeper at Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa. Her advice is never to feed or approach an otter, particularly during the January through May mating season when males are most aggressive.
Feeding wild otters isn't the only harm that people can cause them, though. Large portions of otters' natural habitat have been destroyed by suburban development, and each year, more people take to local waterways for recreation -- a further intrusion on the otters' territory.
Otters are best enjoyed from a distance, said Ms. Blum. In other words, they're lovely to look at, not to hold; if you try to touch one, you're being too bold.
- Stephanie Kiley, 10, is in the fifth grade at Dale Mabry Elementary in Tampa.
Here's the rest of today's Xpress
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