Taxon name
Aonyx cinerea
(Illiger, 1815)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Aonyx cinerea
(Illiger, 1815)
Common name(s)
Oriental Small-clawed Otter, Asian Small-clawed Otter, Small-clawed Otter, Dhaira Uud, Uud Biral, Bhodar
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Mammals
Species authority
(Illiger, 1815)
Taxonomic notes and synonyms listed
This species used to be known as Amblonyx cinereus. DNA work by Koepfli and Wayne (1998, 2003) indicated that the Asian Small-clawed Otter is a sister species to the African Clawless and Congo Clawless Otters. Aonyx is the older name, so the Asian Small-
Amblonyx cinereus Illiger, 1815; Aonyx cinereus Illiger, 1815; Lutra cinerea Illiger, 1815; Amblonyx concolor Rafinesque, 1832; Amblonyx cinerea by Pocock 1941
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
Bangladesh
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
In the last few decades the range of Asian Small-clawed Otter has shrunk particularly in the western portion of its range in the country. Its habitats are severely fragmented and there is an ongoing decline in the extent and quality of its habitat, as well as the number of locations and subpopulations and number of mature individuals due to anthropogenic disturbances and habitat exploitation. It is suspected that the population size is below the threshold level of Endangered category. These factors qualify this species as Endangered.
Assessment details
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
Sajeda Begum
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
IUCN (2012) IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1. Second edition. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iv + 32pp; IUCN (2012) Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
URL (link) of redlist assessment or publication
http://iucnredlistbd.org/
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
This species is native to Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, India (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal), Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Viet Nam. Introduced to United Kingdom (Great Britain). Bangladesh: Sundarbans
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes, in the publication/on website
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
It inhabits natural habitats of ponds and lakes, rivers and streams, coastal tide pools and estuaries, freshwater and mangrove swamps and also near human habitats, especially in rice fields (Khan 2008). This species lives in extended family groups of about 12 individuals with only the alpha pair breeding; offsprings from previous years help to raise the young. It is an excellent swimmer and performs swimming by moving hind legs and tail. It can dive under water for about eight minutes. In the riverine systems, it choose areas with low vegetation and its nesting burrows are dug into the muddy banks. This species spends most of its time on land unlike most other otters. It feeds mainly on invertebrates such as crustaceans and mollusks, but is also known to feed on vertebrates, in particular amphibians (Hussain 2008, Khan 2008).
History
Endangered in Bangladesh (IUCN Bangladesh 2000).
Publication
IUCN Bangladesh. 2015. Red List of Bangladesh Volume 2: Mammals. IUCN, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Bangladesh Country Office, Dhaka, Bangladesh, pp. xvi+232
