Roddy Scheer & Doug Moss EarthTalk North American river otters, famous for their cute whiskered faces and playful behavior, make their home across North America in marine and freshwater rivers, lakes and marshes. While they live alone, they are still social creatures and use a variety of vocalizations to communicate. From the 1500s onward, European settlers in North America trapped river otters, using their waterproof pelts in the fur trade. In the 1900s, their wetland habitats were drained to make room for farmland and urban projects, and the remaining water was often polluted by agricultural and industrial runoff. All three of these dangers led to the historic range of river otters being reduced by more than 75 percent. In the [...]
EarthTalk Q&A: Otters Faring Well
