Rare otter species 'found in Vietnam'

Yahoo News 18 Sep 08;

Researchers said Thursday they have found two hairy-nosed otters, which have been listed as the world's rarest species, in a national park in southern Vietnam.

Scientists came across the pair in U Minh Ha National Park in March, according to a statement from the Carnivore and Pangolin Conservation Program.

"We were only about two and half metres away from them when we spotted the two otters. It was truly amazing to see such a rare species in the wild," said research officer Nguyen Van Nhuan.

Hairy-nosed otters were thought to be extinct in the 1990s. However, they have since been rediscovered in Cambodia, Thailand and Indonesia.

The most recent record of the species in Vietnam was from 2000 in Ca Mau province, which is home to U Minh Thuong National Park.

Nhuan described the animal as "notoriously shy and mostly nocturnal." It eats fish, frogs, reptiles, snakes and insects.

"Their survival is critically linked to protection of their habitat which is peat swampland and seasonally flooded forests," he said in the statement.

Vietnam is home to three other species of otter, including the smooth-coated otter, eurasian otter and oriental small-clawed otter.