Rare footage of a Eurasian otter feasting on fish by the Nujiang River was captured in Gongshan Dulong and Nu Autonomous County in southwest China's Yunnan Province on Monday.

The otter was effortlessly swimming and diving to the bottom of the river when it resurfaced with a large fish that it devoured on a rock near the river bank.

The Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) is under second-class national protection. It is one of the top predators in freshwater ecosystems and an indicator species for the integrity of river wetland ecosystems.

Otters were once hunted to the brink of extinction, but in recent years have made a comeback due to conservation efforts and improving water quality.

Nujiang River has benefited from local government strengthening of ecological protection. 

(Cover image via VCG)

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