FIRST RECORD OF NEOTROPICAL OTTER (Lontra longicaudis Olfers, 1818) IN ‘CAÑÓN DEL RÍO BLANCO’ NATIONAL PARK, VERACRUZ, MEXICO

Abstract

Objective: Documenting the records of river otter (Lontra longicaudis Olfers, 1818) in the ‘Cañón del Río Blanco’ National Park (CRBNP), and in the Blanco River sub-basin, in Veracruz, Mexico.
Design/methodology/approximation: Visits were carried out during six months looking for indirect records and sightings in the CRBNP. A bibliographic revision was made regarding records of Neotropical otter in the Blanco River sub-basin. The records were documented photographically, identified and georeferenced with a Global Position System (GPS).
Results: The first record of Neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis Olfers, 1818) was documented in the CRBNP, through direct sighting on the banks of the Blanco River, in the municipality of Ixtaczoquitlan, 23 km in a straight line from the nearest registry, in the Atoyac River, municipalities of Amatlán de los Reyes and Atoyac, Veracruz. In addition, records of this species have been found in the High Mountainous region of Veracruz, Mexico, together with the record of the species in the Alvarado Lagoon, representing the total distribution of Neotropical Otter in the Blanco River sub-basin.
Limitations of the study/implications: No limitations were found in the study.
Discoveries/conclusions: This record represents an interesting fact about the habitat of otters, since the Blanco River is considered the most polluted in the state of Veracruz and one of the most contaminated in Mexico; commonly this group of mammals was considered as a biological indicator of the health of ecosystems, but now they are considered as biomonitors to reveal changes in wetlands pollution.