jaipur decades ago the smooth coated otter became extinct at the keoladeo national park bharatpur it has been sighted in the ramganga which flows right through the corbett tiger reserve in uttarakhand in kota where the chambal flows a boat owner who doubles as a conservationist says he has spotted a healthy breeding population of these otters the creatures are more likely to be spotted in winter monthsrs tomar who takes visitors on boat rides through the chambal starting from chambal gardens in kota has seen a healthy population of the otters in a 25km stretch of the river between jawahar sagar dam and kota barrage the otters live in family groups of a male a female and the current set of cubsthe large stoutly built otter has short velvety fur that is what gives it its name its throat is pale and there is a paler shade of the dorsal colour on the belly the final half of the tail is markedly flattened and the feet relatively large are webbed it has short sharp strong claws the skull is rounded with massive teeth and a short muzzlein 2014 the international union for the conservation of nature iucn reviewed its status finding its population in fast decline iucn listed it in the red list as vulnerablebesides otters tomar a keen wildlife photographer has captured the eagle owl barn owl and peregrine falcon on his camera he has also found longbilled vultures which breed on the ledges of the vindhyas through which the chambal flowsbesides taking visitors on trips across the chambal tomar regularly familiarizes them with wildlife that can be spotted near the river on occasion he chides visitors who spit into the rivertomar told toi that the otter population was under threat because of the impact of human populations and the flow of harmful chemicals into the river the fish species in the river have been affected because of the pollution impacting the otters that depend on fish for their meals he saidthe construction of dams across the chambal in the 1950s and 60s had dealt a big blow to the otters the species has since seen resurgence says tomar who earlier served as honorary wildlife warden of kotabesides india the otters are found in in java sumatra and borneo it also inhabits rivers in north and southwestern china nepal bhutan and pakistan