The Giant Otter (Pteronura brasiliensis), also known as the giant river otter, is a South American carnivorous mammal. The word "otter" came from Old English word otor or oter. This and has cognate words in other Indo-European languages which stem from Proto-Indo-European "wodr" which ultimatly gave rise to the English word 'water'. It is the longest member of the weasel family, Mustelidae, a globally successful group of predators, as well as the largest, with only the sea otter being heavier, r