DOCSLIB.ORG

Otters & Their Waters

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Otters & Their Waters Otters & Their Waters Exploring a Florida Ecosystem Exhibit Message: This educational exhibit helps visitors discover watersheds and the species within them. It focuses on the North American river otter and its role in watershed ecosystems. Watersheds and water connect us all. Watersheds are lands that drain water toward a body of water such as a lake, stream, river or the sea. The water-saturated areas called wetlands play an important role in the continuous flow of water from rainfall, from glaciers, lakes and rivers into the sea. The water cycle is essential to life on Earth, and changing it can affect many living things, including otters and humans. Water draining from the land enters our coastal wetlands and oceans, where Mote scientists avidly work to benefit natural ecosystems. For instance, Mote’s aquaculture researchers develop eco-friendly methods to farm seafood and to help restore wild fish populations. Our scientists also restore coral reefs, tag and track sharks, study Florida red tide and study and rehabilitate sea turtles and marine mammals, just to name a few efforts. Helping our oceans goes hand-in-hand with helping our watersheds. Our new exhibit animals, the otters, are great ambassadors for their watershed homes. Exhibit Animal: North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) Facts: There are several different subspecies of the North American river otter. They can differ in traits like body size. Please consider the details below to be approximate. Full-body maximum length at about 2 years old: 35 inches to 54 inches or more. This includes head, body and tail. Weight: 16-23 pounds. This is specifically for the subspecies we have on exhibit, called Lontra canadensis lataxina. [SR1] Lifespan: 10-13 years in the wild; 25 years in human care Diet · Primarily eat fish · Opportunistic [SR2] feeders that eat whatever they can locate, including crustaceans such as crabs and crayfish, mollusks and other aquatic invertebrates, insects, birds, frogs, rodents and turtles [SR3] Range: · Streams, lakes, reservoirs, wetlands and along marine coasts in the United States and Canada · Historically, these otters were hunted for their fur, and they are suffering habitat loss as humans modified the land. These otters became rare or locally extinct in many parts of their range, but reintroduction efforts – e.g. into the Rocky Mountain region – has helped to combat population loss. Reproduction and Lifestyle · Occurs in late winter to early spring (December to April) · Gestation period (young is developed in the womb) lasts 60-63 days. · Litter size - 1-3 pups. As many as five have been documented, but that is considered uncommon. Sexual mature at 2-3 years old · Pups are altricial: born helpless, blind and requiring care from their mother · [SR4] Otters usually live alone or in very small social groups. Relation to other animals: · Members of the Mustelid family, which includes ferrets, weasels and minks. Exhibit Section: Watershed=Water Shared · Watershed-area of land that drains water toward a lake, stream, river or the sea · Otters and other animals and plants live in watersheds, including fish, birds, insects, reptiles, amphibians, and us. · 6 Local watersheds in Sarasota County: Sarasota Bay Watershed, Roberts Bay North Watershed, Little Sarasota Bay Watershed, Dona/Roberts Bay Watershed, Lemon Bay Watershed, and Myakka River Watershed. North American River Otters vs. Sea otters, Sea lions and Seals: How to Tell the Difference North American Sea otters Sea lions Seals river otters Webbed paws; toes Shorter/blunter front Large flippers; hind Smaller flippers; can’t quite visible. Tail paws than river otter. flippers can rotate rotate back flippers. Short long & tapered. Webbed toes harder to forward for easier tail between back flippers. see; back feet flipper- walking on land. like. Shorter tail than Short tail between river otters. back flippers. Visible outer ears. Visible outer ears. Visible outer ears. NO visible outer ears. Weigh 16 to 23 Weigh 50-100 pounds. Hundreds of pounds. Hundreds of pounds. pounds Example: 700-pound Example: (U.S. southeastern male 240-pound harbor seals subspecies, Lontra And 240-pound (Phoca vitulina). Other Canadensis female California seals can be bigger. lataxina). sea lions (Zalophus californianus). They walk, run and Clumsier on land than Walk on land with Wriggle on their bellies on slide on land, river otters, tend to large flippers, can land — tend to look the moving more stay in ocean. Sleep in form groups of most awkward on land. efficiently there floating groups of a hundreds on shore. than sea otters. few to hundreds, They eat prey called “rafts.” retrieved from water & have land- bound dens. Solitary or in small groups. Fresh water, Seawater Seawater Seawater (with few brackish or even exceptions) coastal seawater North American River Otters (Lontra canadensis) Exhibit Section: Dive in. Climb out. Repeat · North American River Otters are amphibious; they seek shelter on land, but swim to find food. · North American river otters build dens on land called holts. · They catch food in the water, then bring it on land to eat. Adaptations (characteristics that help an animal survive) · Webbed paws allow them to swim more fluidly. · Flexible spine and rudder like tail streamlines swimming [SR6] · High nostrils and high, wide-set eyes to avoid submersion [SR7] · Though awkward on land, otters have the ability to run 18 miles per hour. · Thick fur traps air, helping them stay warm in the water. · They have 50,000 hairs per square centimeter. · River otters have ears and nostrils that can close up to keep water out during a deep dive. · River otters can control the lens of each eye, allowing them to focus on land or in water · They have vibrissae (sensitive whiskers) that help sense prey in murky, dark water. · River otters are nocturnal (active at night) or crepuscular (active during dawn and dusk). · They have specialized scent glands and can leave a scented substance with urine and feces at a special “scent station.” This marks territory and signals when females are ready to mate. North American River Otters at Mote Marine Laboratory Names and sexes Huck (male), Pippi (female), Jane (female) Relationship to each other? None of them are related. Pippi and Jane were raised together. Where did they come from? Huck: Florida Wildlife Hospital and Sanctuary, Melbourne Florida Pippi and Jane: Wildlife Rehabilitation facility, Conway, South Carolina When did they arrive behind-the-scenes at Mote? Huck: 12/15/15 Pippi/Jane: 12/18/15 They started their time at Mote behind the scenes so that they could get used to their new environment and be trained in behaviors that will help Mote staff take good care of them. Who are the keepers? Amanda Foltz and Britney Cochran are the main keepers. Holly West and Amber Shaw (Turtle Care), Vanessa Hensley (Manatee Care) will be cross-trained to provide additional support. When were they born? They are thought to be late March/early April 2015 babies. Where were they born? All were wild born. One of the females was found orphaned on the side of the road and brought to the rehabber while the other female was dropped off at the rehabber’s drop off site. They were both very young with eyes barely opening. Huck was found in someone’s backyard at about 5 months old, seemingly with hind leg issues. He was very people-friendly, leading us to believe he was hand raised. He received a veterinary check up, and within a couple of days, his hind leg issues seemed to be gone. Nothing else was found to be wrong with him. Because he was used to people, he was not a good candidate for release into the wild. Diet at Mote Feline Diet (meatballs), capelin, herring, silversides, mice, chicks. Enrichment at Mote Environmental enrichment devices are toys designed to give animals healthy mental and physical stimulation. For enrichment, our otters receive lots of different toys, substrates and furniture to climb on. We use non-destructible items made of hard plastic, certain dog toys, pvc objects, a sand box, water pools, ice, etc. Training Positive reinforcement through operant conditioning. We will be training the otters the very basics such as targeting, stationing, and husbandry behaviors (going into a crate, body presentations, getting on a scale to get weighed, eventually voluntary injection and blood draws). Currently we are feeding them 3 or more times per day on a variable schedule. When a behavior is complete, otters are rewarded. Interesting Characteristics Jane Loves her sandbox, and she is the more dominant of the two females. She weighed 10 pounds upon arrival. Pippi is more shy and calm then Jane. She has much smaller eyes and is darker around her face than Jane. She weighed 7 pounds upon arrival. Huck is much larger than the females, at 23.5 lbs upon arrival. He is very dark in color. He loves to play hide-and-seek and chase. Mother or father of these otters? Unknown. Behavior and Communication · River otter pups are born helpless. Mom cares for them and provides milk, and within 21-38 days they open their eyes. · Within a few weeks, the pups may bound, chase and wrestle with other pups. This helps them learn survival skills that ultimately help them survive, find prey and avoid predators as adults. · After a month, they learn how to swim. · One way they communicate is with their scent glands (see “Adaptations” above). · They also make sounds, such as “explosive snort,” an alarm sound; “chuckle,” showing positive feelings; “un-huh, un-huh,” which might be similar to chuckle; and “whoop” or “bird-like chirp,” which females may use to call to pups. Otters’ Place in the Food Web · All animals are linked by a food web.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Mitochondrial Genomes of the United States Distribution
    fevo-09-666800 June 2, 2021 Time: 17:52 # 1 ORIGINAL RESEARCH published: 08 June 2021 doi: 10.3389/fevo.2021.666800 Mitochondrial Genomes of the United States Distribution of Gray Fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) Reveal a Major Phylogeographic Break at the Great Plains Suture Zone Edited by: Fernando Marques Quintela, Dawn M. Reding1*, Susette Castañeda-Rico2,3,4, Sabrina Shirazi2†, Taxa Mundi Institute, Brazil Courtney A. Hofman2†, Imogene A. Cancellare5, Stacey L. Lance6, Jeff Beringer7, 8 2,3 Reviewed by: William R. Clark and Jesus E. Maldonado Terrence C. Demos, 1 Department of Biology, Luther College, Decorah, IA, United States, 2 Center for Conservation Genomics, Smithsonian Field Museum of Natural History, Conservation Biology Institute, National Zoological Park, Washington, DC, United States, 3 Department of Biology, George United States Mason University, Fairfax, VA, United States, 4 Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation, Front Royal, VA, United States, Ligia Tchaicka, 5 Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States, 6 Savannah River State University of Maranhão, Brazil Ecology Laboratory, University of Georgia, Aiken, SC, United States, 7 Missouri Department of Conservation, Columbia, MO, *Correspondence: United States, 8 Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States Dawn M. Reding [email protected] We examined phylogeographic structure in gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) across † Present address: Sabrina Shirazi, the United States to identify the location of secondary contact zone(s) between eastern Department of Ecology and and western lineages and investigate the possibility of additional cryptic intraspecific Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, divergences.
    [Show full text]
  • Regional Differences in Wild North American River Otter (Lontra Canadensis) Behavior and Communication
    The University of Southern Mississippi The Aquila Digital Community Dissertations Spring 2020 Regional Differences in Wild North American River Otter (Lontra canadensis) Behavior and Communication Sarah Walkley Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations Part of the Biological Psychology Commons, Cognitive Psychology Commons, Comparative Psychology Commons, Integrative Biology Commons, and the Zoology Commons Recommended Citation Walkley, Sarah, "Regional Differences in Wild North American River Otter (Lontra canadensis) Behavior and Communication" (2020). Dissertations. 1752. https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations/1752 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact [email protected]. REGIONAL DIFFERENCES IN WILD NORTH AMERICAN RIVER OTTER (LONTRA CANADENSIS) BEHAVIOR AND COMMUNICATION by Sarah N. Walkley A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate School, the College of Education and Human Sciences and the School of Psychology at The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Approved by: Dr. Hans Stadthagen, Committee Chair Dr. Heidi Lyn Dr. Richard Mohn Dr. Carla Almonte ____________________ ____________________ ____________________ Dr. Hans Stadthagen Dr. Sara Jordan Dr. Karen S. Coats Committee Chair Director of School Dean of the Graduate School May 2020 COPYRIGHT BY Sarah N. Walkley 2020 Published by the Graduate School ABSTRACT This study focuses on the vocalization repertoires of wild North American river otters (Lontra canadensis) in New York and California. Although they are the same species, these two established populations of river otters are separated by a significant distance and are distinct from one another.
    [Show full text]
  • Redalyc.TAPHONOMIC ANALYSIS of RODENT BONES from Lontra
    Mastozoología Neotropical ISSN: 0327-9383 [email protected] Sociedad Argentina para el Estudio de los Mamíferos Argentina Montalvo, Claudia I.; Vezzosi, Raúl I.; Kin, Marta S. TAPHONOMIC ANALYSIS OF RODENT BONES FROM Lontra longicaudis (MUSTELIDAE, CARNIVORA) SCATS IN FLUVIAL ENVIRONMENTS Mastozoología Neotropical, vol. 22, núm. 2, 2015, pp. 319-333 Sociedad Argentina para el Estudio de los Mamíferos Tucumán, Argentina Available in: http://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=45743273010 How to cite Complete issue Scientific Information System More information about this article Network of Scientific Journals from Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain and Portugal Journal's homepage in redalyc.org Non-profit academic project, developed under the open access initiative Mastozoología Neotropical, 22(2):319-333, Mendoza, 2015 Copyright ©SAREM, 2015 Versión impresa ISSN 0327-9383 http://www.sarem.org.ar Versión on-line ISSN 1666-0536 Artículo TAPHONOMIC ANALYSIS OF RODENT BONES FROM Lontra longicaudis (MUSTELIDAE, CARNIVORA) SCATS IN FLUVIAL ENVIRONMENTS Claudia I. Montalvo1, Raúl I. Vezzosi2, and Marta S. Kin1 1 Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de La Pampa, Avda. Uruguay 151, 6300 Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina [Correspondence: Claudia I. Montalvo <[email protected]>]. 2 Laboratorio de Paleontología de Vertebrados, Centro de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia de Tecnología a la Producción de Diamante, CONICET, Matteri y España s/n, 3105 Diamante, Entre Ríos, Argentina. ABSTRACT. The Neotropical otter Lontra( longicaudis, Mustelidae, Carnivora) is defined as a generalist carni- vore. Although it is a fish-crustacean feeder, rodents are commonly found in its diet, though less frequently. In order to learn about the effects that this predator produces on its prey’s bones, we conducted taphonomic analysis of bone remains from scats collected in a riparian habitat of Santa Fe, Argentina.
    [Show full text]
  • The 2008 IUCN Red Listings of the World's Small Carnivores
    The 2008 IUCN red listings of the world’s small carnivores Jan SCHIPPER¹*, Michael HOFFMANN¹, J. W. DUCKWORTH² and James CONROY³ Abstract The global conservation status of all the world’s mammals was assessed for the 2008 IUCN Red List. Of the 165 species of small carni- vores recognised during the process, two are Extinct (EX), one is Critically Endangered (CR), ten are Endangered (EN), 22 Vulnerable (VU), ten Near Threatened (NT), 15 Data Deficient (DD) and 105 Least Concern. Thus, 22% of the species for which a category was assigned other than DD were assessed as threatened (i.e. CR, EN or VU), as against 25% for mammals as a whole. Among otters, seven (58%) of the 12 species for which a category was assigned were identified as threatened. This reflects their attachment to rivers and other waterbodies, and heavy trade-driven hunting. The IUCN Red List species accounts are living documents to be updated annually, and further information to refine listings is welcome. Keywords: conservation status, Critically Endangered, Data Deficient, Endangered, Extinct, global threat listing, Least Concern, Near Threatened, Vulnerable Introduction dae (skunks and stink-badgers; 12), Mustelidae (weasels, martens, otters, badgers and allies; 59), Nandiniidae (African Palm-civet The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the most authorita- Nandinia binotata; one), Prionodontidae ([Asian] linsangs; two), tive resource currently available on the conservation status of the Procyonidae (raccoons, coatis and allies; 14), and Viverridae (civ- world’s biodiversity. In recent years, the overall number of spe- ets, including oyans [= ‘African linsangs’]; 33). The data reported cies included on the IUCN Red List has grown rapidly, largely as on herein are freely and publicly available via the 2008 IUCN Red a result of ongoing global assessment initiatives that have helped List website (www.iucnredlist.org/mammals).
    [Show full text]
  • Diversity of Mammals and Birds Recorded with Camera-Traps in the Paraguayan Humid Chaco
    Bol. Mus. Nac. Hist. Nat. Parag. Vol. 24, nº 1 (Jul. 2020): 5-14100-100 Diversity of mammals and birds recorded with camera-traps in the Paraguayan Humid Chaco Diversidad de mamíferos y aves registrados con cámaras trampa en el Chaco Húmedo Paraguayo Andrea Caballero-Gini1,2,4, Diego Bueno-Villafañe1,2, Rafaela Laino1 & Karim Musálem1,3 1 Fundación Manuel Gondra, San José 365, Asunción, Paraguay. 2 Instituto de Investigación Biológica del Paraguay, Del Escudo 1607, Asunción, Paraguay. 3 WWF. Bernardino Caballero 191, Asunción, Paraguay. 4Corresponding author. Email: [email protected] Abstract.- Despite its vast extension and the rich fauna that it hosts, the Paraguayan Humid Chaco is one of the least studied ecoregions in the country. In this study, we provide a list of birds and medium-sized and large mammals recorded with camera traps in Estancia Playada, a private property located south of Occidental region in the Humid Chaco ecoregion of Paraguay. The survey was carried out from November 2016 to April 2017 with a total effort of 485 camera-days. We recorded 15 mammal and 20 bird species, among them the bare-faced curassow (Crax fasciolata), the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), and the neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis); species that are globally threatened in different dregrees. Our results suggest that Estancia Playada is a site with the potential for the conservation of birds and mammals in the Humid Chaco of Paraguay. Keywords: Species inventory, Mammals, Birds, Cerrito, Presidente Hayes. Resumen.- A pesar de su vasta extensión y la rica fauna que alberga, el Chaco Húmedo es una de las ecorregiones menos estudiadas en el país.
    [Show full text]
  • Food Habits of the North American River Otter (Lontra Canadensis)
    Food Habits of the North American River Otter (Lontra canadensis) Heidi Hansen Graduate Program, Department of Zoology and Physiology University of Wyoming 2003 Introduction The North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) is a predator adapted to hunting in water, feeding on aquatic and semi-aquatic animals. The vulnerability and seasonal availability of prey animals primarily determines the food habits and prey preference of the river otter (Erlinge 1968; Melquist and Hornocker 1983). There are many studies that document the food habits of the river otter for most of their present range in North America. Among many, a few areas of study include southeastern Alaska (Larsen 1984); Arkansas (Tumlison and Karnes 1987); northeastern Alberta, Canada (Reid et al. 1994); Colorado (Berg 1999); Idaho (Melquist and Hornocker 1983); Minnesota (Route and Peterson 1988); Oregon (Toweill 1974); and Pennsylvania (Serfass et al. 1990). The diet of the river otter has been determined by analyzing either scat collected in the field (Berg 1999; Larsen 1984; Reid et al. 1994; Serfass et al. 1990; Tumlison and Karnes 1987) or gut contents obtained from trapper-caught otters (Toweill 1974). The contents were identified to family (fish, crustacean, etc.) and species if possible in order to determine the prey selection and the frequency of occurrence in the diet of the river otter. Fish are the most important prey items for river otters, occurring in the diet throughout the year (Larsen 1984; Reid et al. 1994; Route and Peterson 1988; Serfass et al. 1990, Toweill 1974, Tumlison and Karnes 1987). This has been documented by every study done on river otter food habits.
    [Show full text]
  • Evolutionary History of Carnivora (Mammalia, Laurasiatheria) Inferred
    bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.10.05.326090; this version posted October 5, 2020. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. This article is a US Government work. It is not subject to copyright under 17 USC 105 and is also made available for use under a CC0 license. 1 Manuscript for review in PLOS One 2 3 Evolutionary history of Carnivora (Mammalia, Laurasiatheria) inferred 4 from mitochondrial genomes 5 6 Alexandre Hassanin1*, Géraldine Véron1, Anne Ropiquet2, Bettine Jansen van Vuuren3, 7 Alexis Lécu4, Steven M. Goodman5, Jibran Haider1,6,7, Trung Thanh Nguyen1 8 9 1 Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Sorbonne Université, 10 MNHN, CNRS, EPHE, UA, Paris. 11 12 2 Department of Natural Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Middlesex University, 13 United Kingdom. 14 15 3 Centre for Ecological Genomics and Wildlife Conservation, Department of Zoology, 16 University of Johannesburg, South Africa. 17 18 4 Parc zoologique de Paris, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris. 19 20 5 Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA. 21 22 6 Department of Wildlife Management, Pir Mehr Ali Shah, Arid Agriculture University 23 Rawalpindi, Pakistan. 24 25 7 Forest Parks & Wildlife Department Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. 26 27 28 * Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.10.05.326090; this version posted October 5, 2020. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. This article is a US Government work.
    [Show full text]
  • Mercury Poisoning in a Free-Living Northern River Otter (Lontra Canadensis)
    Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 46(3), 2010, pp. 1035–1039 # Wildlife Disease Association 2010 Mercury Poisoning in a Free-Living Northern River Otter (Lontra canadensis) Jonathan M. Sleeman,1,5,6 Daniel A. Cristol,2 Ariel E. White,2 David C. Evers,3 R. W. Gerhold,4 and Michael K. Keel41Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Richmond, Virginia 23230, USA; 2 Department of Biology, The College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia 23187, USA; 3 BioDiversity Research Institute, Gorham, Maine 04038, USA; 4 Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study, College of Veterinary Medicine, The University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602, USA; 5 Current address: USGS National Wildlife Health Center, 6006 Schroeder Road, Madison, Wisconsin 53711, USA; 6 Corresponding author (email: [email protected]) ABSTRACT: A moribund 5-year-old female increasing (Basu et al., 2007; Wolfe et al., northern river otter (Lontra canadensis) was 2007). Background levels of mercury in found on the bank of a river known to be otters in ecosystems contaminated primar- extensively contaminated with mercury. It exhibited severe ataxia and scleral injection, ily through atmospheric deposition are made no attempt to flee, and died shortly under 9.0 mg/g (wet weight [ww]) in the thereafter of drowning. Tissue mercury levels liver (Yates et al., 2005) and lower in the were among the highest ever reported for a kidney (Kucera, 1983). Levels of mercury free-living terrestrial mammal: kidney, 353 mg/ g; liver, 221 mg/g; muscle, 121 mg/g; brain (three in ecosystems contaminated with point replicates from cerebellum), 142, 151, 151 mg/g sources can result in mortalities, as (all dry weights); and fur, 183 ug/g (fresh reported for a dead otter from Ontario weight).
    [Show full text]
  • Os Nomes Galegos Dos Carnívoros 2019 2ª Ed
    Os nomes galegos dos carnívoros 2019 2ª ed. Citación recomendada / Recommended citation: A Chave (20192): Os nomes galegos dos carnívoros. Xinzo de Limia (Ourense): A Chave. https://www.achave.ga"/wp#content/up"oads/achave_osnomes!a"egosdos$carnivoros$2019.pd% Fotografía: lince euroasiático (Lynx lynx ). Autor: Jordi Bas. &sta o'ra est( su)eita a unha licenza Creative Commons de uso a'erto* con reco+ecemento da autor,a e sen o'ra derivada nin usos comerciais. -esumo da licenza: https://creativecommons.or!/"icences/'.#n #nd//.0/deed.!". Licenza comp"eta: https://creativecommons.or!/"icences/'.#n #nd//.0/"e!a"code0"an!ua!es. 1 Notas introdutorias O que cont n este documento Neste documento fornécense denominacións galegas para diferentes especies de mamíferos carnívoros. Primeira edición (2018): En total! ac"éganse nomes para 2#$ especies! %&ue son practicamente todos os carnívoros &ue "ai no mundo! salvante os nomes das focas% e $0 subespecies. Os nomes galegos das focas expóñense noutro recurso léxico da +"ave dedicado só aos nomes das focas! manatís e dugongos. ,egunda edición (201-): +orríxese algunha gralla! reescrí'ense as notas introdutorias e incorpórase o logo da +"ave ao deseño do documento. A estrutura En primeiro lugar preséntase a clasificación taxonómica das familias de mamíferos carnívoros! onde se apunta! de maneira xeral! os nomes dos carnívoros &ue "ai en cada familia. seguir vén o corpo do documento! unha listaxe onde se indica! especie por especie, alén do nome científico! os nomes galegos e ingleses dos diferentes mamíferos carnívoros (nalgún caso! tamén, o nome xenérico para un grupo deles ou o nome particular dalgunhas subespecies).
    [Show full text]
  • Northern River Otter, Lontra Canadensis
    Lontra canadensis (Schreber, 1777) Margaret K. Trani and Brian R. Chapman CONTENT AND TAXONOMIC COMMENTS The Nearctic northern river otter was recognized as distinct from Eurasian genera by van Zyll de Jong (1972, 1987). Wozencraft (1993) and Baker et al. (2003) followed van Zyll de Jong in using Lontra as the generic name. However, some authors (e.g., Whitaker and Hamilton 1998) continue to place the species in genus Lutra. Seven subspecies currently are recog- nized (Hall 1981, Lariviere and Walton 1998); one subspecies (L. c. lataxina) occurs in the South. The life history of the northern river otter is reviewed by Toweill and Tabor (1982), Melquist and Dronkert (1987), Lariviere and Walton (1998), and Melquist et al. (2003). DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS The northern river otter has a large, long body with short legs and a hydrodynamic shape that distin- guishes it from other mustelids. Feet are pentadactyl and plantigrade with interdigital webbing pronounced on the longer toes of the hind foot (Melquist et al. 2003). The tail is about one-third of total length and tapered from base to tip. Measurements are: total length, 890–1200 mm; tail, 350–520 mm; hind foot, 100–140 mm; ear, 20–30 mm; weight, 4.5–15 kg. Females are 3–21% smaller than males (Blundell et al. 2002). The short, thick, and glossy pelage ranges from dark brown to dark reddish-brown dorsally, and pale brown to silver-gray ventrally. The throat and muzzle often are silvery gray to brownish-white. The ears are round and inconspicuous. The small eyes are positioned anteriorly (Lariviere and Walton 1998).
    [Show full text]
  • Mammals of New York State – Efb 483
    MAMMALS OF NEW YORK STATE – EFB 483 ORDER DIDELPHIMORPHIA Family: Didelphidae 1. Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana) ORDER SORICOMORPHA Family Soricidae 2. Masked shrew (Sorex cinereus) 3. Pygmy shrew (Sorex hoyi) 4. Long-tailed shrew (Sorex dispar) 5. Smoky shrew (Sorex fumeus) 6. Water shrew (Sorex palustris) 7. Northern short-tailed shrew (Blarina brevicauda) 8. Least shrew (Cryptotis parva) Family Talpidae 9. Eastern mole (Scalopus aquaticus) 10. Hairy-tailed mole (Parascalops breweri) 11. Star-nosed mole (Condylura cristata) ORDER CHIROPTERA Family: Vespertilionidae 12. Little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus) 13. Northern myotis (Myotis septrionalis) 14. Indiana myotis (Myotis sodalis) 15. Small-footed myotis (Myotis leibii) 16. Eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) 17. Hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) 18. Big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) 19. Eastern pipistrellus (Pipistrellus (Perimyotis) subflavus) 20. Silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans) ORDER CARNIVORA Family: Canidae 21. Coyote (Canis latrans) 22. Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) 23. Gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) Family: Ursidae 24. American black bear (Ursus americanus) Family: Procyonidae 25. Raccoon (Procyon lotor) Family: Mustelidae 26. Fisher (Martes pennanti) 27. American marten (Martes americana) 28. Mink (Neovison vison) 29. Long-tailed weasel (Mustela frenata) 30. Short-tailed weasel (Mustela erminea) 31. River otter (Lontra canadensis) Family: Mephitidae 32. Striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) Family: Felidae 33. Bobcat (Lynx rufus) ORDER ARTIODACTYL Family: Cervidae 34. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) 35. Moose (Alces alces) ORDER RODENTIA Family: Sciuridae 36. Red squirrel: (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) 37. Eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) 38. Fox squirrel (Sciurus niger) 39. Northern flying squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus) 40. Southern flying squirrel (Glaucomys volans) 41. Eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus) 42.
    [Show full text]
  • Effects of Increased Feeding Frequency on Captive North American River Otter (Lontra Canadensis) Behavior
    EFFECTS OF INCREASED FEEDING FREQUENCY ON CAPTIVE NORTH AMERICAN RIVER OTTER (LONTRA CANADENSIS) BEHAVIOR By Matthew J. Hasenjager A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE ZOO AND AQUARIUM MANAGEMENT 2011 ABSTRACT EFFECTS OF INCREASED FEEDING FREQUENCY ON CAPTIVE NORTH AMERICAN RIVER OTTER (LONTRA CANADENSIS) BEHAVIOR By Matthew J. Hasenjager Manipulating captive feedings to resemble natural conditions can be highly effective in promoting species-typical foraging behaviors and patterns, thereby improving welfare. Despite its potential importance and relative ease of implementation, meal frequency is rarely considered in captive management strategies. North American river otters (Lontra canadensis) are a common species in North American zoos and provide an excellent subject to investigate feeding frequency questions. Wild otters spend large amounts of time foraging and consuming numerous small meals daily. Higher activity levels might be associated with increased meal frequency and decreased resting behavior in captivity. In this study, behavioral responses to a number of factors were considered. While no behavioral responses to meal frequency were detected, other feeding- related variables could have obscured potential effects. Additional variables were found to significantly affect behavior. The time of day appeared to influence behavior via external factors, such as the zoo-going public which was associated with decreased resting and increased stereotypic behavior. Precipitation could provide unplanned, beneficial stimulation for amphibious animals such as otters. Finally, individual behavioral variation was used to aid interpretation and highlight the importance of accounting for animal individuality. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the administration and keepers at Potter Park Zoo and John Ball Zoo for allowing and facilitating this study.
    [Show full text]