IUCN/SSC Otter Specialist Group Bulletin
© IUCN/SCC Otter Specialist Group
Volume 29 Issue 2 Pages 70 - 120 (June 2012)
Abstracts
New Occurrence Data of Neotropical Otters Lontra longicaudis (Olfers, 1818),
in Bahia State, Northeastern Brazil
Pages 71 - 79 (Report)
Luciano R. Alardo Souto
Very little is known about the neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis) in the Brazilian state of Bahia. The purpose of this study was to record the number and location of sites where otters have been recorded in this area. Between 1988 and 2009, there were 29 records of otters in Bahia, including the collection of 13 living (9) and dead (4) otters. Of the live otters, 61.53% were adults and 38.46% pups. Five of these were males, five were females and the gender of three individual was not established. The majority (41,37%) of otter records were made in northern Bahia, and 31.03% were made in southern Bahia (31.03%). Eight records (27,58%) were made in the area around Todos os Santos bay, including seven sites where the species was not previously known to occur. No observations were made in the mid-west region of the state, so future studies are needed in this region.
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Are Otters Generalists or do they prefer Larger, Slower Prey? Feeding Flexibility of the Neotropical Otter Lontra longicaudis in the Atlantic Forest
Pages 80 - 94 (Article)
Marcelo Lopes Rheingantz, Luiz Gustavo Oliveira-Santos, Helen Francine Waldemarin and Erica Pellegrini Caramaschi
Despite there being several studies focusing on feeding habits of Lontra longicaudis, few studies aimed to evaluate its prey selectivity and none of them considered prey mobility. In this study, we report both its feeding flexibility and specialist feeding behaviour between two parts of Mambucaba River, Southeastern Brazil. We observed that they fed mainly on fish, crabs and crayfish. We did not observe seasonality either in diet or prey community availability. However, using ANOVA, we found differences between stretches for diet composition and in the availability of prey. Monotonic Multi-Dimensional Scaling ordination showed that the otter diet in mangroves was dominated by Brachyura and the prey availability by Brachyura, Caridea, Ariidae, Mugilidae, Gerreidae, Centropomidae and Cichlidae, while the diet in the river stretch was dominated by Cichlidae, Caridea and Heptapteridae, and the prey availability by Characidae, Erythrinidae and Heptapteridae. According to Ivlev Electivity Index, along the river few preys were consumed according to their abundance, the majority being selected. Otters preferred slower prey, no matter their size. We observed variation in the level of preference of the same prey in different stretches, with flexibility in otter diet. Otter ate few preys according to their abundance, but showed specialist feeding behaviour, eating the slowest prey of the stretch.
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Distribution of Neotropical Otter, Lontra longicaudis (Olfers, 1818) (Mustelidae)
in Coastal Islands Of Santa Catarina, Southern Brazil
Pages 95 - 108 (Report)
Oldemar Carvalho-Junior, Alexandre Fillipini and Carlos Salvador
This study presents the distribution of neotropical otters (Lontra longicaudis) in coastal islands of Santa Catarina State. A total of 23 islands were surveyed, through 46 field trips. Otter's signs were found in 9 islands, representing 39% of the total. It is believed that the Lontra longicaudis use these islands as a support for its movement from one place to another. The results could be indicating the existence of a coastal ecological corridor used by the neotropical otter.
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A Qualitative Assessment of Lontra longicaudis annectens Aquatic Habitats in
Alvarado, Mexico
Pages 109 - 115 (Report)
Gilberto Silva-López, María Remedios Mendoza-López, Jesús Samuel Cruz-Sánchez, Oscar García-Barradas, Gabriela López Suárez, Luis G. Abarca-Arenas, Francisco Gutiérrez-Mendieta and Armando Martínez Chacón
A laboratory screening study following USEPA SW-846 test methods allowed the detection of organic compounds in the aquatic habitat of the Neotropical river otter (Lontra longicaudis annectens), in the Alvarado Lagoon System, Veracruz, Mexico. The compounds detected included 2-chlorocyclohexanol, phenylethylene glycol, benzophenone, ethanol-2-butoxyphosphate, styrene, p-xylene, ethylbenzene, trans-1,2- cyclohexanediol, di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate, benzeneacetaldehyde, hexadecane, tetracosane, docosane, triacontane, sitosterol, hexadecanoic acid, 1-eicosanol, chlorobenzene, and phosphorothioic acid trimethyl ester. Literature review showed a lack of data on the compounds´ potential effects on wildlife, although some of them could be considered harmful to the otters and their prey. The different compounds detected needs follow-up.
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