I Have a Safari Park

Liu Wei listened to the explanation of the breeder while observing the environment of the venue.

The stream flows and becomes a wide pond.

There are natural reeds on the edge of the pond, swaying, giving people a natural and comfortable feeling.

There is a small island in the middle of the pond, and a tree trunk perch traverses the edge of the island and the creek bank. There are also tree trunks on the island and the other in the water.

The trunk retains intricate roots, and the cracks in the roots are like a maze for the otter, and they disappear when you drill inside.

There was an otter lying on the tree trunk and itching, rubbing his mouth and cheeks, rubbing his cheeks, rubbing his stomach, and then turned over and rubbed his back, how cool he rubbed, his small eyes squinted, and he looked very comfortable.

Other otters slid down into the water from the trunk, like a slide.

It seems that the environment here is indeed what they want.

And Amemiya's attention is on the cute appearance of the otter!

The small-clawed otter is the smallest of the thirteen types of otters in the world. It is small in size and looks like a long gourd with a round belly and a round head, a short snout, and a long white beard.

Staring fascinatedly at the otter playing with its belly exposed: "Kawaii!"

I took several photos of the otter.

The breeder continued: "In China, there are 3 species of otters recorded! They are the Eurasian otter, the Asian small-clawed otter and the river otter. Among them, the Eurasian otter is the most widely distributed, from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the southeast coast. , From the north to the tropical rain forest, they have their presence.

You can take a look. Here are some comparison pictures of otters. "

Next to the popular science exhibition, the body length and weight of several kinds of otters from top to bottom are marked. With the pictures, the comparison is quite intuitive.

Including some obvious characteristics, such as the Eurasian otter has a flat head and a round tail, while the Asian small-clawed otter has a short round head and a flat tail.

A tourist asked curiously: "Since otters are so common, why have I never seen them or heard of reports about them?"

The breeder smiled and said, "Then I have to talk about it a long time ago!"

The popular science exhibition signs in the otter exhibition area are stringed together in sequence.

The exhibition signs at the entrance of the exhibition area introduce their characteristics, let visitors have a basic understanding, introduce their history in the middle, and then introduce the reasons for their demise and the threats they are facing.

The breeder walked forward and came to the middle exhibition sign, and the tourists moved with it.

"'The east wind thaws, the sting worm begins to vibrate, the fish is on the ice, and the otter sacrifices the fish." This passage comes from the "Book of Rites"! As early as two thousand years ago, our ancestors described and recorded the otter in ancient books.

The ground began to thaw, the ice surface melted, and fish floated up from the bottom of the water. The otters also began to fish, placing the fish one by one on the shore. In the eyes of the ancients, it looked like an otter was offering sacrifices, which was a very peculiar behavior.

The otter sacrifices to the fish, and then the Yuren enters Zeliang. Jackal sacrifices to beasts, and then hunts in the field; the dove turns into an eagle, and then sets up a sky; the vegetation is scattered, and then enters the mountains and forests; the insects are not stung, do not use the fire field. No addiction, no eggs, no fetal killing, no evil spirits, no overwhelming nests.

Seeing the otter offering to fish is the signal to end the winter fishing ban, and the fisherman can start fishing. You see, our ancients are actually very powerful. They understood the principle of sustainable development thousands of years ago. "

"Wow!"

"Our ancestors are so wise!"

"Taoism speaks of harmony between man and nature, and harmony with nature. Confucianism speaks of compassion, benevolence and forgiveness. We have this gene in our culture."

The tourists were quite proud of it.

"Because otters are good at fishing, the ancients also domesticated otters to help them fish.

It can be said that the otter played a very important role in the production and life of our ancients.

Otters are almost everywhere in areas where there are records in Chinese language. In the historical documents and local chronicles of ethnic minority areas, otters are often recorded. It can be said that otters once lived in every corner of this land. Wherever they are.

Here is the distribution of an otter in history based on the restoration of ancient books, as well as the county records about otters in Linhai. You can take a look. "

The tourists all leaned over enthusiastically.

Liu Wei listened to the explanation of the breeder and was also interested in watching the exhibition to see if there are otters in his hometown.

A piece of green is used on the exhibition sign to indicate the range of otter distribution. With several pictures, we can see that the distribution of otters is still very extensive.

The comparison chart uses yellow to indicate the distribution of otters after 2000, and suddenly changes from a large green to a few small ones.

Suddenly he was shocked: "Why did you drop so much at once?"

The breeder’s tone was a little heavier: "The otter’s fur is smooth, waterproof and warm. It is considered the top grade for making clothing. Also, because the otter lives on the waterside, it is considered a fisheries pest and has various medicinal effects. , So it has been hunted and killed in ancient times.

However, the impact on them was not so great. Until the last century, otters were hunted and killed in large numbers. This may be the darkest period they have encountered for tens of thousands of years.

For example, in Hubei, more than 14,000 otters were killed in 55 years alone. In Hunan, up to 25,000 otter skins were recovered a year.

Because of this, after our Wildlife Protection Law was established, several species of otters were listed as second-class protected animals, but they did not reverse their downward trend.

The most widely distributed Eurasian otter has completely disappeared in many provinces, and in some provinces where it is distributed, the population has generally dropped by 80 to 90%, even reaching 96%-99%. And the river otter hasn't heard from it for decades.

It can be said that with the exception of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, which has a relatively low population density and low utilization of natural resources, otters in eastern and southern China are on the verge of extinction, with only a few scattered distributions.

The existence of otters that can still be found in our Linhai is actually a rare and valuable thing. "

The tourists were all silent for a while, feeling uncomfortable, and some even sighed.

The breeder said: "Although the hunting of otters has decreased, their populations have not recovered, and they are still facing many threats. For example, water pollution, the reduction of prey caused by fisheries, and the construction of dams.

Among them, water pollution may be the biggest problem they face!

Otters are an indicator species, and they cannot survive where the water quality is not good.

In polluted water bodies, various heavy metals accumulate in fish and shrimp and other prey objects, which will cause adverse effects on otters.

In the last century, many otters in Europe suffered a devastating blow due to water pollution caused by the large-scale use of pesticides containing DDT, and their populations did not begin to recover until these pesticides were banned. "