Meet Jenny: the rare albino otter found in Iraq

Record ID: 1677409

  • Title: Meet Jenny: the rare albino otter found in Iraq
  • Date: 20th June 2022
  • Summary: BAGHDAD, IRAQ (JUNE 19, 2022) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) HEAD OF MEDIA AND PUBLIC RELATIONS OF THE IRAQI GREEN CLIMATE ORGANISATION, MAHDI LAITH, SAYING: "Otters are considered to be on the top of the ecological balance in rivers. Their presence is essential because they feed on and control the number of many different animals in the rivers and even birds that are clos
  • Embargoed: 4th July 2022 16:53
  • Keywords: Albino Conservation Eurasian Otter Iraq Wildlife
  • Location: BALAD, BAGHDAD, UNKNOWN LOCATION, IRAQ
  • City: BALAD, BAGHDAD, UNKNOWN LOCATION, IRAQ
  • Country: Iraq
  • Topics: Environment,Middle East,Nature/Wildlife
  • Reuters ID: LVA004599420062022RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: When local Iraqi fisherman Nasser Latif pulled out his net from the Tigris river and found an albino Eurasian Otter amid his catch, he knew the white-furred, red-eyed animal had to be special.
    Latif then posted a video of his rare find on social media looking for answers only to find purchase offers worth thousands of dollars, the 29-year-old, who also graduated as an English teacher, said.
    The following day, on June 16, a team including representatives of the Iraqi Green Climate Organisation and Iraq’s ministry of environment took the road to visit Latif and the otter he has since called ‘Jenny’.
    “We are now heading to the Balad district to see the animal, to inspect its health” said Mahdi Laith, head of media and public relations at the Iraqi Green Climate Organisation, as he was filming himself in the car to document their journey.
    To allow the team of experts to document the about four months-old female animal, it was held on a rope during their visit, Laith said.
    According to Latif, he is now keeping the otter in an enclosure he built by the riverbank.
    Samer Adnan Hani, from Iraq’s ministry of environment, told Reuters over the phone he considered spotting the albino Eurasian Otter in Iraq an achievement for the country.
    He said a team at his ministry, including the minister himself, was currently studying whether the animal should be rehabilitated and released, or transferred to the zoo in Baghdad’s Zawra park.
    Hani added that the ministry worried the animal, if released, could get caught by others and traded.
    According to the IUCN contacted over email on the matter, albino otters should be kept in captivity because their coat is easily noticed and puts them at risk of predators.
    In addition, “their physical strength and sight is much weaker than the average otter.”
    Meanwhile, Laith is also raising awareness on the importance of protecting otters in Iraq.
    "Water pollution, climate change, desertification, droughts” are among the factors putting the animal in danger, he added, in addition to human threats including killing and hunting.
    The video his organisation posted on social media about the albino otter got over 2 millions of views.
    According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), this was the second time an albino Eurasian Otter was spotted worldwide.
    In 2020, the Eurasian Otter (Lutra Lutra) was assessed as ‘near threatened’ by the IUCN.
    (Production: Charlotte Bruneau)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2022. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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