VANCOUVER — A river otter that has taken up residence at a classical Chinese park in Vancouver has eaten valuable koi fish. Here are some facts on koi and river otters:
Name: Koi or Nishikigoi
Scientific name: Cyprinus carpio
Family: Members of the common carp family but specially bred to produce coloured variants
Weight: Depends on where they are bred: In Japan, up to 5.5 kilograms
Length: In Japan, 56 to 66 centimetres, with jumbo koi up to 91 centimetres. Those from outside Japan range in size from 30 to 38 centimetres.
Lifespan: 25 to 35 years, but they can live longer. One in Japan is reported to have lived for more than 200 years, dying on July 7, 1977.
Food: Almost anything that fits into their mouth, including the eggs of their own young or koi fry when they still resemble small insects.
Habitat: Any fairly deep, shaded, cool pond.
Reproduction: Koi must be bred to produce their unique colours. If not, they revert to original carp colouring within a few generations.
Personality: The website koistory.com says they have an indefinable “presence,” which is also known as “hinkaku,” that makes certain koi the most highly prized.
Value: Depending on size, shape, colouring, personality and breeding location, koi can cost less than $10 per fish to upwards of $300,000.
Quirky trait: There are more than a dozen types of Koi colouring. Koi “beauty parades” are common in Japan for exclusively Japanese-bred fish. Winners of these exclusive pageants can fetch the highest prices. Koi will respond to a feeding bell and some seem to enjoy being patted by humans.
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Name: North American river otter.
Scientific name: Lontra canadensis.
Family: Mammals and a member of the weasel family.
Weight: 14 kilograms maximum.
Length: 60 to 68 centimetres; the tail is about two-thirds the length of an otter’s body.
Lifespan: 8 to 9 years in the wild, up to 25 years in captivity.
Food: Fish, shellfish, birds and small mammals.
Habitat: Throughout Canada, except the Arctic. In B.C., coastal shorelines, estuaries, tidal flats, rivers, streams, wetlands, ponds and lakes.
Reproduction: Female river otters usually give birth to two to five kits and reach sexual maturity by two years of age.
Personality: Otters are known as playful, they love to slide on muddy or snowy river banks. The communicate with buzzes, staccato chuckles and chirps.
Value: They are listed as a yellow species by the BC Conservation Data Centre. This includes species that are apparently secure and not at risk of extinction, although river otters have been hunted extensively for their dense and long-lasting fur.
Quirky trait: Can remain underwater for more than four minutes. Well adapted to diving in murky water. Use whiskers to sense prey. Catch food with their mouths, not their paws.
Sources: Sierra Club BC, BC Conservation Data Centre, LiveAquaria, koistory.com.
The Canadian Press
