Otter Otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the weasel family Mustelidae, which also includes badgers, honey badgers, martens, minks, polecats, and wolverines. The word "otter" derives from the Old English word "otor" or "oter". This, and cognate words in other Indo-European languages, ultimately stem from the Proto-Indo-European language root *wódr̥, which also gave rise to the English word "water". An otter's den is called a holt or couch. Male otters are called dogs or boars,
Neotropical otter at this zoo. An 86-day gestation period is much longer than the previously accepted belief that gestation lasts around 60 days. Two possible explanations are: differences might exist between different subspecies or a later copulation may have occurred and not been observed. Also, this otter species might display short-term variation in gestation periods. Neotropical otter The neotropical otter or neotropical river otter ("Lontra longicaudis") is an otter species found in Central America, South America and the island of Trinidad. It is physically similar to the northern and southern river otter, which occur directly north and south of this species' range.