What is the maximal age a African clawless otter reaches?
An adult African clawless otter (Aonyx capensis) usually gets as old as 11 years.
African clawless otters are around 63 days in the womb of their mother. When born, they weight 3 grams (0.01 lbs) and measure 4.7 cm (0′ 2″). As a member of the Mustelidae family (genus: Aonyx), their offspring is 2 babies per pregnancy. Fully grown, they reach a bodylength of 80.9 cm (2′ 8″).
As a reference: Usually, humans get as old as 100 years, with the average being around 75 years. After being carried in the belly of their mother for 280 days (40 weeks), they grow to an average size of 1.65m (5′ 5″) and weight in at 62 kg (137 lbs), which is obviously highly individual.
The African clawless otter (Aonyx capensis), also known as the Cape clawless otter or groot otter, is the second-largest freshwater species of otter. African clawless otters are found near permanent bodies of water in savannah and lowland forest areas. They range through most of sub-Saharan Africa, except for the Congo River basin and arid areas. They are characterized by partly webbed and clawless feet, from which their name is derived. The word aonyx means “clawless”, derived from the prefix a- (“without”) and onyx (“claw/hoof”).
Animals of the same family as a African clawless otter
Not really brothers and sisters, but from the same biological family (Mustelidae):
- Striped skunk becoming 12.92 years old
- North American river otter becoming 25 years old
- Southern river otter growing to a mass of 7.5 kgs (16.53 lbs)
- Nilgiri marten growing to a mass of 2.04 kgs (4.5 lbs)
- Neotropical otter with 3 babies per pregnancy
- American marten becoming 19 years old
- Japanese marten growing to a mass of 1 kgs (2.2 lbs)
- Long-tailed weasel becoming 7.08 years old
- European mink becoming 10 years old
- Eurasian otter becoming 22 years old
Animals that reach the same age as African clawless otter
With an average age of 11 years, African clawless otter are in good companionship of the following animals:
- Naked mole-rat usually reaching 10 years
- Complex-toothed flying squirrel usually reaching 12 years
- Edible dormouse usually reaching 9 years
- Black-flanked rock-wallaby usually reaching 12 years
- Javan mongoose usually reaching 10 years
- Greater bamboo lemur usually reaching 12 years
- Greater spear-nosed bat usually reaching 10 years
- Ground cuscus usually reaching 12 years
- Plains viscacha usually reaching 9.33 years
- Bush dog usually reaching 10.33 years
Animals with the same number of babies African clawless otter
The same number of babies at once (2) are born by:
- Marsh mongoose
- Large Indian civet
- Target rat
- Fishing cat
- Crab-eating raccoon
- Spix’s yellow-toothed cavy
- Lesser yellow bat
- Greater Egyptian jerboa
- Travancore flying squirrel
- Red tree vole
Weighting as much as African clawless otter
A fully grown African clawless otter reaches around 19.16 kg (42.24 lbs). So do these animals:
- Common duiker weighting 15.57 kilos (34.33 lbs) on average
- Pygmy brocket weighting 16.5 kilos (36.38 lbs) on average
- Hairy-fronted muntjac weighting 18.45 kilos (40.68 lbs) on average
- Oribi weighting 17.16 kilos (37.83 lbs) on average
- Bay duiker weighting 20 kilos (44.09 lbs) on average
- Speke’s gazelle weighting 20 kilos (44.09 lbs) on average
- Gray brocket weighting 16.63 kilos (36.66 lbs) on average
- Eurasian lynx weighting 19.3 kilos (42.55 lbs) on average
- Roe deer weighting 22.45 kilos (49.49 lbs) on average
- North American beaver weighting 18.11 kilos (39.93 lbs) on average
Animals as big as a African clawless otter
Those animals grow as big as a African clawless otter:
- Siberian musk deer with 90 cm (3′ 0″)
- Blue duiker with 69.3 cm (2′ 4″)
- Binturong with 78.7 cm (2′ 7″)
- African golden cat with 79.9 cm (2′ 8″)
- Hairy-nosed otter with 76.5 cm (2′ 7″)
- Linnaeus’s two-toed sloth with 69 cm (2′ 4″)
- Ethiopian wolf with 94.1 cm (3′ 2″)
- Cameroon clawless otter with 83.7 cm (2′ 9″)
- Indian crested porcupine with 75 cm (2′ 6″)
- Gray brocket with 92.3 cm (3′ 1″)