A white otter in Scotland

The CFZ News blog has reported on the discovery of a white otter in Scotland:

An otter charity has said an image of a rare albino otter has been captured by an amateur wildlife photographer.

Karen Jack said the sight of the white animal eating a fish on rocks in Moray was "surreal".

Grace Yoxon, of the Skye-based International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF) said the otter was "extremely rare".

Ms Jack had to wait for the animal to reappear from the sea after catching a quick glimpse of it earlier.

She said: "I have been into photography for about three years as a hobby and love photographing wildlife, landscapes and my two cats.

"But it was just an amazing and surreal view of the albino otter, and for it to sit there and eat while we watched on was mind blowing."

Mrs Yoxon added: "It is extremely rare to see albino animals in the wild and to be able to get such wonderful photos is exceptional.

"Karen was extremely lucky to have her camera with her - I am very envious."

In March, IOSF took into its care an otter which latched on to two teenagers who were sledging, then followed them home.

The cub was spotted in snow under a bush at Windygates, Fife, in February.

He was nicknamed Dylan because one of the youngsters was playing a harmonica - an instrument synonymous with singer Bob Dylan.

How big do otters get?

In the BioFortean Review (November 2006), Chad Arment reports on a huge otter killed near Portage, Maine in 1949.

Portage, Dec. 3. (AP)—The otter Walter Bolstridge trapped may have been the giant of the otter world.

Game Warden Wilfred L. Atkins said the animal's glossy pelt measured 66 inches long. The average otter is about 40 inches.

And Bolstridge said that before being skinned, the huge otter was about 76 inches long from the tip of its nose to the end of its tail.

State Fish and Game Commissioner George J. Stoble said an otter as big as Bolstridge's trophy may be a world's record.

Bolstridge caught the otter recently on the Big Fish River, between Portage and St. Froid Lakes, in Northern Maine.

Mink trapping was disappointing in the area in the month-long season that ended last Wednesday. Rain and snow hampered trappers.

At Hollis, Alfred Hall, 78-year-old coon hunter, also took a good-sized otter this week that his coon dogs had tracked for some distance at night through the brush.

The dogs cornered the animals in a thicket and Hall shot it with a 22-caliber pistol, after one of his two hounds had been badly mauled by the animal.

As river otters have been shown to be extant in Pennsylvania, 6+ foot specimens are certainly relevant to any monster reports...

Otters in York County

From Wild About PA (July 21, 2009):

York County Wildlife Conservation Officer Michael Reeder recently picked up two road-killed river otters just south of Dillsburg.

Both animals were found within a mile of each other and a week apart.

"I have been hearing of more and more otter sightings in the area and this shows we have an increasing population," Reeder said.