If you have a group of friends to play with, you might hang out at the pool all summer. The river otter lives this way all year long. It is a very energetic and playful animal and loves to roll, dive, slide along mud and snow banks and body surf along currents in the water.

When packing for the pool or beach, you probably include some goggles and a towel and maybe even some nose plugs or ear plugs. Sometimes, you might take along swim fins or a snorkel. The river otter carries all its swim gear wherever it goes. It doesn’t need a towel because it has two layers of fur which keep its skin from getting wet. Instead of goggles, the otter has a clear third eyelid, called a nictitating membrane, which protects the otter’s eye underwater and helps it to see just as clearly as it can on land. The otter’s ears and nose both have valves that can close to keep water from getting in when the otter is swimming. Though it doesn’t have a built-in snorkel, the otter can hold its breath for up to eight minutes underwater, and its webbed feet make great swim fins. With its flexible and slender body, it can glide through the water backward or forward, using its thick tail as a rudder to steer.

In addition to being webbed, the otter’s feet have claws to help it move well on land. It usually doesn’t stray very far from a river or lake, but it might travel several miles to reach another river or waterway. It can run up to 18 m.p.h. An adult human walking travels only about three m.p.h. An otter’s claws are also helpful when it builds a den along a river bank. The den usually has an underwater entrance with a tunnel that leads up above the water level to the den. The otter’s home may also have an entrance above ground.

Though the North American river otter has no special status as an endangered or threatened species, its numbers have declined in some areas because of loss of habitat, pollution from pesticides and trapping.