2023 marks the 30th year of caring for otters worldwide by the International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF). During this time IOSF has supported projects in 91 countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Philippines, Belarus, Chile, Lithuania, Nepal, Benin, Guyana and Costa Rica. In the charity’s own otter hospital over 250 otters have been […]
Author: Grace Yoxon
World Otter Day – Join the Otter Takeover
IOSF WORLD OTTER DAY takes place each year on the last Wednesday in May and the aim is to draw attention to the 13 species of otter – all of them are listed in the IUCN Red List and populations of 12 of them are still declining. This includes the Eurasian otter which is the […]
Austria flouts EU law to cull otters
Lower Austria is planning to trap and shoot 40 otters in the very near future. This is in spite of the fact that otters are protected by the European Union Fauna and Flora Habitats Directive. This is in response to appeals from fishermen stating that there are too many otters. The numbers quoted for that […]
2016 – The Year of the Otter
Otters are special animals – not only are they wonderful to watch but they are great indicators to a healthy environment. And yet all over the world they are being exploited for commercial gain and in some places hunted almost to extinction. Did you know that for every tiger skin found there are at least […]
First Pan-African Otter Training Workshop held in Tanzania
The latest Red List update by IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, has placed an alarming 12 of the 13 species of otter worldwide showing a declining population, with the North American river otter the only one shown as “stable”. Of those 13, Sub-Saharan Africa is home to three species: The spotted-necked otter (Lutra […]
Unique new book provides further insights into the world of the elusive otter
The first book providing spectacular photographs and an insight into the lives and behaviour of ALL 13 species of otters has now been launched. It contains detailed information about the magnificent Giant Otter of the Amazon, the tiny Asian Small-Clawed Otter so often found in zoos, the Sea Otter with its charming habits of cracking […]