4469. WILDLIFE SINGAPORE. Smooth coated otters in Potong Pasir 16 Feb 2025

Wildlife Singapore
by Dr Sing Kong Yuen
1 Mar 2025


This video shows:
1. A group of Smooth-coated Otters along the Kallang River, Potong Pasir.
Video was shared by by Mr Chan Jin Lee on 16 Feb 2025 at 7.20pm.

2. A video of the North American river otters (Lontra canadensis) is shown to compare them with the Smooth-coated Otters seen in Potong Pasir Town, beside the Kallang River.  The North American river otters has a thick water repellent fur. An adult weighs between 5 and 14 kg.

The North American river otter has a thick
water-repellent fur to protect and insulate him.
An adult weighs between 5 and 14 kg. It lives
only in the North American continent.

Compared to the Smooth-coated otters in Singapore,
they look much bigger in size and are heavier. Being expert
swimmers, they can swim up to seven miles per hour
and dive down 60 feet.

3. Two stock photos of a Smooth-coated otter eating an orange fish at Marina Bay are for sale at www.shutterstock.com/g/toapayohvets.

A Smooth-Coated Otter swimming and eating a
large orange fish in the clean Marina Bay was
photographed by Dr Sing. To buy photos:
www.shutterstock.com/g/toapayohvets


4. SUMMARY:

Singapore has two species of otters — the Oriental Small-clawed Otter, and a larger species called the Smooth-coated Otter which weighs 7 kg to 11 kg and measures 96 cm to 120 cm in total body length.

The larger smooth-coated otters subsist mainly on fish, and small-clawed otters feed more on crustaceans and molluscs. 

The former is found along the coast and in larger rivers
while the latter forages within forested mangroves,
ponds and streams. The latter locations are fewer in Singapore
compared to large rivers and reservoirs, owing to urbanisation.

The government's successful clean-up efforts leading to
unpolluted waterways that sustain fish and the wildlife
such as the Smooth-coated Otters that feed and live in them.

The Scientific name for the Smooth-coated Otters is
Lutrogale perspicillata. They may be spotted quite regularly
in groups of two to more than 10 in rivers, reservoirs
and lakes in places like the Botanic Gardens and public parks. 

They have become a pest to private house owners
and others who keep kois and carp fishes in
outdoor ponds. These otters have had eaten all
their valuable ornamental fishes.

The other local species which is the small-clawed otter.
Its Scientific name is Aonyx cinereus. It lives in 
riverine habitats, freshwater wetlands and mangrove swamps. 
It feeds on molluscs, crabs and other small aquatic animals. 

As Singapore has fewer forested mangroves, ponds and 
streams than rivers and reservoirs, it is rarely spotted in public
housing towns such as Potong Pasir.  In any case, it will not have its
preferred small aquatic animals. However, this species 
is seen in the Mandai Wildlife Reserves Zoo.

 

Otters smell pungent, particularly near where they leave their spraints (otter defecation) to mark their territory on land. If you spot otters, do not touch, chase, or corner them, as this may frighten them. Instead, watch them from afar.

 We have come to the end of the video.
TO VIEW MORE EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS BY DR SING KONG YUEN:
www.youtube.com/c/99pups

To buy otter photos, go to  www.shutterstock.com/g/toapayohvets

5. UPDATES AT:
https://2010vets.blogspot.com/2025/02/smooth-coated-otters-in-potong-pasir-16.html

Thank you for watching

 

Two stock photos of Smooth-coated Otter eating an orange fish at the Marina Bay.

Description is as follows:
SINGAPORE - 10 FEB 2021: Clean waters of Marina Bay, near The Esplanade Theatres enable fishes to thrive. A smooth-coated otter in a family swimming in the Marina Bay eats an orange carp fish.

To buy these photos, go to  www.shutterstock.com/g/toapayohvets

5. UPDATES AT:
https://2010vets.blogspot.com/2025/02/smooth-coated-otters-in-potong-pasir-16.html

6. TO VIEW MORE EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS BY DR SING KONG YUEN:
www.youtube.com/c/99pups