Winter is perhaps the best time of year to spot a North American river otter in the coastal estuaries of New Jersey. The semiaquatic mammal, which sits at the top of the food chain in our state’s waterways, may be more visible when wetlands, bays, streams, ponds and lakes have frozen over and these furbearers are traveling on the ice, noted Jim Oxley, wildlife management bureau chief for the N.J. Department of Environmental Protection’s division of Fish and Wildlife.

“In addition,” said Oxley, “it is much easier to see evidence of otter tracks when there is snow on the ground.