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,
Otter fishing been known to import this practice to their homes in Europe. Otter fishing is also reported from Central and South America. A Maxacali creation story from Brazil suggests that the practice of otter fishing may have been prevalent in the past. Fishermen from Guyana used a different tactic - they would observe where an otter deposited its catch and later purloin the fish. In the Old World, two otter species have been primarily used in otter fishing – the European otter ("Lutra lutra"), chiefly in Europe and North Africa, and the smooth-coated otter ("Lutrogale perspicillata"), mostly in South Asia and