# Eurasian otter (*Lutra lutra*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/eurasian-otter  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) is a mammal in the family Mustelidae and subfamily Lutrinae, within the order Carnivora. It is a medium-sized carnivore with an adult body mass of 8.8 kg, and it is a terrestrial, cathemeral animal of coastal, forest, freshwater, riverine and wetland habitats. Gestation lasts 63 days, ranging from 61 to 74 days, with 1 litter per year of 2 young, and sexual maturity is reached at 1.5 years. The IUCN Red List classifies the Eurasian otter as Near Threatened in its global assessment, which is not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 7.81 kg – 8.79 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 18.2 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 22 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | coastal, forest, freshwater, riverine, wetland |
| Gestation | 61 days – 74 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2.04 – 2.8 |
| Age at maturity | 18 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Active | Day and night (cathemeral) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Near Threatened (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Carnivora
- family: Mustelidae
- genus: Lutra
- species: *Lutra lutra* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Barangia nepalensis*, *Lustra vulgaris*, *Lutra angustifrons*, *Lutra aurobrunneus*, *Lutra chinensis*, *Lutra fluviatilis*, *Lutra hanensis*, *Lutra indica*, *Lutra japonica*, *Lutra kutab*, *Lutra lutra angustifrons*, *Lutra lutra aurobrunnea*, *Lutra lutra aurobrunneus*, *Lutra lutra barang*, *Lutra lutra ceylonica*, *Lutra lutra chinensis*, *Lutra lutra hainana*, *Lutra lutra kutab*, *Lutra lutra lutra*, *Lutra lutra lutra*, *Lutra lutra meridionalis*, *Lutra lutra monticola*, *Lutra lutra monticolus*, *Lutra lutra nair*, *Lutra lutra nippon*, *Lutra lutra oxiana*, *Lutra lutra piscatoria*, *Lutra lutra seistanica*, *Lutra lutra splendida*, *Lutra lutra whiteleyi*, *Lutra monticolus*, *Lutra nair*, *Lutra nippon*, *Lutra nudipes*, *Lutra piscatoria*, *Lutra roensis*, *Lutra sinensis*, *Lutra stejnegeri*, *Lutra vulgaris*, *Lutra vulgaris amurensis*, *Lutra vulgaris baicalensis*, *Lutra vulgaris kamtschatica*, *Lutra vulgaris marinus*, *Lutronectes whiteleyi*, *Mustela lutra*, *Mustela lutra piscatoria*, *Viverra lutra*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the Eurasian otter?

The Eurasian otter is a mammal of the family Mustelidae, subfamily Lutrinae, in the order Carnivora.

### How heavy is a Eurasian otter?

An adult Eurasian otter weighs 8.8 kg, which places it in the medium size class (1 to 25 kg).

### What does the Eurasian otter eat?

The Eurasian otter is a carnivore.

### What habitats does the Eurasian otter live in?

It lives in coastal, forest, freshwater, riverine and wetland habitats.

### Is the Eurasian otter endangered?

No, it is listed as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List global assessment, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a Eurasian otter live?

The Eurasian otter has a lifespan of 18.2 years, with values up to 22 years reported.

### How many young does a Eurasian otter have?

It has 2 young per litter, up to 2.8, and 1 litter per year after a gestation of 63 days.

### Who named the Eurasian otter?

The scientific name Lutra lutra is credited to Linnaeus, 1758, written as (Linnaeus, 1758).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/eurasian-otter