Otters! The heartwarmingly rotund and glossy creatures that roam our waters and surface from time to time in the most unexpected places—how could they ever not be welcome?
Well, when they eat all the fish you’ve been keeping, I’m afraid.
That was the misfortune that happened in The Crest condominium near Alexandra Road yesterday afternoon (6 Apr), when residents spotted about a dozen otters frolicking in the condominium pond, according to TODAYonline. The fish they had painstakingly kept, meanwhile, was nowhere to be seen.
A resident at the condominium, Ms Yvonne Chan, posted a video of the otter-ly horrifying otter invasion to the Facebook group Singapore Wildlife Sightings, which you can see below:
In an interview with CNA, resident Veron Tan described as “depressing” that “[the otters] ate up pretty much most of the fish [they] had”, adding that “[they] feed the fish every weekend”.
Well, and now the fish are being fed to someone else. Even the surviving fish don’t have it easy: some are missing an eye.
The fish had been a great source of entertainment for residents of the condominium. The children would gather around the pond and take delight in the regular fish-feeding, and some children were “frightened to tears” when the otters appeared.
The condominium is adjacent to Alexandra Canal, which is likely the source of the otter incursion.
What are These Otters?
Well, knowing more about the wildlife in our Garden City is always helpful. Depending on whether you live in The Crest condominium, you can either gain a greater appreciation of our biodiversity or have a better idea how to avenge your fish.
Know your enemy, as they say.
The otters in Singapore are normally Smooth-coated Otters, according to NParks. A frequent visitor to mangroves, mudflats, and coastal areas on our island, they are social creatures that are rarely ever spotted alone… as you would have known.
Despite their innocuous, endearing appearance, their smell is often unpleasant, and any otter sightings are best enjoyed from a distance, according to WildSingapore. In any case, human proximity would scare these water-dwelling creatures, who just want their fill of fish in peace.
Unless they try to eat your S$64,000 ornamental koi, as a Sentosa Cove resident witnessed in 2015. But be warned if you intend to fight them: the Smooth-coated Otter is listed as a “Critically Endangered” species in Singapore and “Vulnerable” globally.
So if you do any harm, you’ll have to add a court case to your list of fights.
But in case yesterday’s fiasco has convinced you that otters are the spawn of the devil, here’s some cute otter news to remind you that not all otters are evil.
After all, if you see otters wiggling around in Botanic Gardens for who-knows-what reason, they’re probably not out to eat your fish. At the most, you might question if they were drunk, high, or possessed, but you’d probably also concede that it would make a pretty cute sight.
Or should I say… an otter-ly adorable sight?
Feature Image: Facebook (Yvonne Chan)
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