What do y'all figure it is in the south compared to the north? Using population numbers in the south, I would assume it's drastically different due to abundance of food. What's y'all's take?

Study was actually done on that, as i figured it depends on the individual otter, one little female lived in an area about the size of a muskrat territory while two males traveled 100's of miles! That's the two extreme's and rest were anywhere in the middle.

Commercial fish ponds however change that in winter, they find those they pretty much hit them nightly it seems. Breeding season sends the males all across the globe looking for love.

J i picture otters in the south, would be like me livin in the back of the supermarket. Dont have to go far at all for grub

Jtrap I have a place near home on the Arkansas River, when the water is stable, where I can set and pretty much like clock work catch an otter every 8 to 10 days. That's on a big river. Mating season comes in, set more traps. I wonder how much territories overlap outside of mating season?

Yep, there's plenty to eat, especially in your neck of the woods Spot.

I don't think they defend territory's, lots of over lapping going on.

Got a steam plant on a river i have trapped a couple of times, never could figure out why never caught many otters till went out to the steam plant one time and that solved the mystery, discharge from it keeps their pond full of warm water year round, crawfish never hole up so it has EVERY otter on that river camped out at it all winter long cause they have crawfish to eat and won't leave till they are all gone.

Lot of variable's come into play causing animal movement or lack of it, sometimes we know why most of the time we don't.

When I am doing nuisance beaver work and need to avoid otter, I need to get in and out asap. 10-14 days max. Still catch some since the otters don't know what day I started.