Si Collection, Lower Volume Radical: Dog (quǎn) Ta Kangxi strokes: 20 Page 721, Entry 02 Pronounced ta Shuowen Jiezi (Shuowen) says: It resembles a small dog, lives in water, and eats fish. Yupian (Yupian) says: The otter resembles a cat. Book of Rites (Liji), Wangzhi: Only after the otter has caught fish and laid them out may the officials in charge of mountains and marshes enter the waters to build weirs and catch fish. Mencius (Mengzi): It is the otter that drives the fish into the deep pools. Piya (Piya): This animal belongs to the category of the White Tiger of the West; it resembles a fox but is smaller, blue-black in color, with skin like a bat. When it catches a carp by the water, it spreads the fish out in four directions and bows to them without eating; the world calls this offering fish. Ancient accounts state that toad fat can be combined with jade, and otter bile can separate wine. It is also said that bears die from eating salt, and otters die from drinking wine. Huainanzi (Huainanzi) says: An otter's den can predict the rise and fall of water levels. When apes cry, otters respond. Therefore, Shu Xi in Famengji (Famengji) says: Apes take otters as their wives. Zhengzitong (Zhengzitong): The mountain otter is produced in the caves of Yizhou, Guangxi; its nature is lecherous. When there are such animals in the mountains, the females always depart. Fan Chengda in Yuhengzhi (Yuhengzhi) says: The mountain otter, known locally as chaqiao, will certainly leap over to embrace a woman if it scents her. If it has no mate, it will embrace a tree and die. There is also the sea otter, which lives in the sea; it resembles an otter but is larger, and its fur does not get wet when it touches water. Li Shizhen says: People today use its fur for collars; it is inferior to sable fur. Su Song says: The liver lobes of various animals have a fixed number, but only the otter’s liver grows one lobe each month. In the twelfth month, there are twelve lobes. Among them are receding lobes; one must see the physical specimen to verify this, otherwise, many claims are false. Pronounced da The meaning is the same. Jiyun (Jiyun) says: Sometimes written as a variant form.