The second USS Scoter (AM-381) was an Auk-class minesweeper acquired by the United States Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.

Scoter was the second United States Navy vessel to have that name, and was laid down on 4 April 1944 by the Gulf Shipbuilding Corp., Chickasaw, Alabama; launched on 26 September 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Reuben E. Clarson; and commissioned on 17 March 1945.

In company with 14 minesweepers and other craft, Scoter departed Sasebo for a sweeping operation in the East China Sea on 26 October.

However, after one day's sweeping, she was withdrawn from the task group and returned to Sasebo to prepare for minesweeping support missions elsewhere in Japan.

Scoter departed San Diego on 16 November 1946 with five YMSs, and, for the next five months, supported these vessels as they cleared minefields at Johnston Island, Eniwetok, Guam, and Woleai.