Rajiv Welikala's video: Eurasian Otter- Horton Plains Sri Lanka

Yes, you read that right. Often disregarded or dismissed as the ever present mongoose, otters have been an important part of Sri Lanka’s ecosystem for many decades. However, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List otters were categorised as “Near Threatened” since the year 2004. Otters in Sri Lanka are often found from the sub-species Lutra lutra nair or the Eurasian otter. In Sri Lanka, the Eurasian otter has been dubbed the Ceylon Otter. Environmentalist, ecologist, and attorney-at-law, Jagath Gunawardena, told Roar that while the otter population used to be vast, it is now very rare to see the mammal around, partly thanks to destruction of their habitat. All otters are shy and elusive mammals, but the Eurasian otter is one of the most elusive. According to the IUCN Otter Specialist Group, the Eurasian otter is only about a metre long, weighing roughly eight kilograms. Their fur is roughly a dark brown on the back, shading to buff or grey on the belly and throat. The otter’s diet mainly consists of fish, but they also eat various types of water birds, crayfish and frogs. Breeding can occur throughout the year, though locally some seasonality may be seen, correlating to prey density. This species is the most widely distributed of all the otters, ranging throughout Eurasia up to the Arctic Circle, south to North Africa, Sri Lanka and Indonesia.