2010 is the year of the giants at Chester Zoo with Giant Anteaters and Giant Otters being added to the zoo’s stock. African Painted Dogs are another new species at the Zoo.
The Giant Otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) is a South American carnivorous mammal. It is the longest member of the Mustelidae, or weasel family, a globally successful group of predators. The Giant Otter is a social species, with family groups typically supporting three to eight members. The groups are centered on a dominant breeding pair and are extremely cohesive and cooperative. The Giant Otter is diurnal, being active exclusively during daylight hours. It is the noisiest otter species and distinct vocalizations have been documented that indicate alarm, aggressiveness, and reassurance. The Giant Otter lives mostly in and along the Amazon River and in the Pantanal.
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Love those otters! We had smaller river otters at our zoo. I remember they had, shall we say, a very distinctive odor.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing them and hopefully finding out a bit of their story :D
ReplyDeleteMust give some thought to the possibility of a visit to the zoo when I'm down. I can't recall when I last went to one. I've always been a bit iffy about captive animals although I do appreciate there are many good things about zoos as well.
ReplyDeleteI love otters and the thought of being able to see a giant otter fills me with glee, thank you, Sir Scriptor! x
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