As long as a person
It is the longest member of the weasel family, as long as a tall adult.
Amazon river
Giant otter
Pteronura brasiliensis
A very large, dark-brown otter with a cream patch on its throat and a flat, paddle-shaped tail.
- Size
- Up to 1.8m long: the biggest otter
- Look for it
- All year round
- Where
- Rivers and lakes of the Amazon and the Pantanal
Swims after you, diving and popping up. Move your pointer and see.
When to look
Giant otter
Good to know
Six things about the giant otter
A throat like a fingerprint
Each otter's cream throat patch is a different shape, so they, and scientists, can tell who is who.
Very noisy
Families keep up a constant chatter of squeals, hums and barks. Scientists have counted 22 different calls.
River wolves
They hunt in family groups of up to ten, and will see off a caiman together.
Fish all day
A giant otter eats three or four kilograms of fish a day.
A campsite
The family clears a patch of bank, digs a den and shares a toilet area that marks its territory.
The real thing
Photos of the giant otter
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Photos are from Wikimedia Commons, used under the free licences shown. They have been resized, and cropped where they appear in link previews.
How to spot one
Look on quiet oxbow lakes at dawn. You will hear them first, then see a row of heads periscoping up to look at you. Take an adult with you.
How to help
Giant otters are endangered. They were hunted for fur, and now suffer from mining and over-fishing. Protected lakes are bringing them back.