Singapore otter photographed with trash around neck at Robertson Quay
Reddit user spotted otter from Zouk family while walking dogs, contacted ACRES who will monitor situation for a period of time
SINGAPORE — An otter was photographed with what seemed to be a pink string entangled around its neck at Robertson Quay at 8am on Monday (7 August).
The otter was identified by user "orcsab" in a Reddit post to be from the Zouk family of otters in Singapore.
He told Yahoo Southeast Asia that he had spotted the otter on the stairs of a ferry stop on the south side of the Singapore River, about 20 metres south of Alkaff Bridge.
A few couples were also watching the otters from the bridge, with another uncle with a bike observing from above the stairs. The user pointed out that otters would usually draw lots of attention with their squeaking.
Upon discovering one of the otters had trash around its neck, he attempted to call the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES), but got directed to their WhatsApp chat function instead.
He sent over his picture, and indicated the time and location where he saw the otter. In response, ACRES said that it will monitor the otter for a period of time if its mobility is unaffected,.
The Zouk otters got their name because they are active around the Singapore River behind the old Zouk nightclub. They later moved to the Singapore Botanic Gardens, and are currently one of the most visible otter families.
Yahoo Southeast Asia has contacted ACRES, OtterWatch and a biological scientist for further information.
How to spot otters in Singapore
According to Google, the top three location searches to spot otters in Singapore in the past six months are the Singapore River, Marina Bay and Singapore Botanic Gardens.
Otters were previously classified as critically endangered in Singapore. A rare sighting of five otters occurred in Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park in 2014, and since then, many more otters have been spotted due to conservation efforts to protect their habitats and clean the waterways.
It is advisable not to feed, chase nor corner the otters. The public are also advised against littering or leave sharp objects in water bodies.
Google Search otters doodle
According to Google, Singapore is the top country in the world to search for otters on the search engine in the past year.
Google Search also launched a local doodle, featuring Singapore's smooth-coated otters, on its homepage last Saturday (5 August).
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