IUCN/SSC Otter Specialist Group Bulletin
© IUCN/SCC Otter Specialist Group
Volume 30 Issue 2 Current Issue (August 2013)
Abstracts
A Comparative Diet Analysis of the Neotropical Otter in Santa Catarina Island, Brazil
Pages 67 - 77 (Article)
Oldemar Carvalho-Junior, Luis Macedo-Soare, Alesandra Bez Birolo and Tammy Snyder
This work represents a comparative diet analysis of the neotropical otter Lontra longicaudis by scat analysis (n= 8841) for four different areas, located on Santa Catarina Island, south of Brazil. The study areas, the main ecosystems found on the Island, are all natural reserves. The results are based on long term data sets (2003-2009) comparing food item proportions through years, with inter-annual and monthly variability. For all study areas, fish (71%) and crustacean (25%) are the main food types, followed by mollusks (2%), birds (1%) and mammals (1%). In the case of main food categories, there is no observed inter-annual or monthly variability for the food items that compose the otter’s diet. The results show that, on the Santa Catarina Island, the neotropical otter presents a well defined diet composition that does not change from place to place, and has no inter-annual or monthly variability.
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Re-Colonisation of the Eurasian Otter (Lutra lutra) in the Hron River Catchment (Slovakia) – a Preliminary Report from a Survey, or Who Reintroduced the Otter in the Hron River and Why?
Pages 78 - 102 (Report)
Peter Urban
The Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) is widely distributed in Slovakia. The population of this species markedly decreased during the 20th century. In the last two decades an increase and a colonizing tendency of the population species range have been registered. A similar trend took place in the Hron River catchment. The modified standard IUCN/OSG method for monitoring of the Eurasian Otter population was used in three field censuses of the otter distribution in the Hron River catchment. Results were obtained at two resolutions, an approximately 10×12 km grid from the "Databank of Slovak Fauna (DSF)", corresponding to 48 quadrates and higher resolution resulting from the subdivision of the first grid corresponding to 152 quadrants of approximately 2.5×3km). During the first survey (in winter of 1995/1996) 35 quadrates (72.9 %) and 73 quadrants (48.0 %) were positive. During the second survey (in summer and autumn of 2010) 45 quadrates (93.7 %), or 116 quadrantes (76.3%) were found positive. During the third mapping (in winter of 2011/2012) 45 quadrates and 120 (78.9%) quadrates were positive. Results of two recent regional surveys (2010, 2011/2012) documented an increase in percentage of positive sites for otter and an increase in the range occupied by otters in the Hron River catchment when compared to that in 1995/1996. The increase was most pronounced in the central part of the catchment and probably related with improvement of the surface water quality in 1980s and 1990s.
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A Non-Invasive Genetic Survey of Otters (Lutra lutra) in an Urban Environment: A Pilot Study with Citizen Scientists
Pages 103 - 111 (Article)
Shane White, David O’Neill, Denise B. O’Meara, Carolyn Shores, Catherine O’Reilly, Andrew P. Harrington, Gill Weyman And D. P. Sleeman
Acquiring reliable estimates for an elusive species' distribution and population size can be problematic. For cryptic species such as the Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra), traditional monitoring approaches rely heavily on identifying field signs that may under or overestimate population sizes. Increasingly, non-invasive genetic sampling is effectively applied to assess the abundance and population structure of otters by genotyping faeces (spraints). Here we present the results of a non-invasive survey conducted in Cork City, Ireland, which aimed to estimate otter population size, sex ratio and genetic diversity. We incorporated a citizen science approach by training members of the public in spraint collection, thus increasing our search effort and sample detection rate. From October 2011 to May 2012, 199 spraints were collected and 187 (94%) were genetically identified as otter. Of these positive otter samples, 13 spraints (7%) yielded genetic information identifying 11 individuals (5 female and 6 male) using nine microsatellite loci. The results indicate that the urban environment does not prevent otters from using the area and we consider the implications based upon contemporary knowledge on otter spatial behaviour. This study demonstrates that non-invasive survey techniques combined with a citizen science approach can effectively reveal otter population parameters and increase urban otter awareness within the community.
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New Records of Hairy-Nosed Otter (Lutra sumatrana) in Peninsular Malaysia
Pages 112 - 118 (Short Communication)
Nick Baker
Two sightings of Hairy-nosed Otter (Lutra sumatrana) were made at Sungai Tanum and Sungai Relau, Taman Negara, Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia. These are the third and fourth formally documented records of the species from Peninsular Malaysia since the 1960’s, and the first records from Taman Negara in the same period
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New Observation of the Hairy-Nosed Otter (Lutra sumatrana) in Sumatra
Pages 118 - 122 (Short Communication)
Kurnia Latifiana and Rob Pickles
An adult hairy-nosed otter (Lutra sumatrana) was photographed by the authors in Tambling Wildlife Nature Conservation, a privately managed concession within the Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park in southern Sumatra. This observation represents the southern-most record of the L. sumatrana’s known range and is only the second time in the last fifty years that the species has been recorded in Sumatra.
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