Winter Diet of River Otters in Kentucky

Barding, Erin E.; Lacki, Michael J.

doi:10.1656/045.019.0202

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…North American, European Lutra lutra) primarily forage based on prey availability (Erlinge 1968, Anderson and Woolf 1987, Lanszki and Körmendi 1996, and mink are most active in areas where prey abundance and availability are high (Burgess and Bider 1980, Wise et al 1981, Larivière 2003, Wolff et al 2015. River otter primarily prey on fish (Roberts et al 2008, Barding and Lacki 2012, Feltrop et al 2016), but also consume crustaceans and molluscs (Satterthwaite-Phillips et al 2014, Fretueg et al 2015, Feltrop et al 2016). Diets of mink and river otter overlap, however, mink are a generalist carnivore taking more terrestrial prey than river otter (Wise et al 1981).…”

Section: Sampling Design and Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fish species richness was simply the number of species found during the survey and fish abundance was the total number of individual fish collected. Centrarchidae, Catostomidae, Cyprinidae and Ictaluridae have been reported as the most important families consumed by otter, varying in importance based on location (Roberts et al 2008, Stearns and Serfass 2011, Barding and Lacki 2012. Species within these families were considered preferred fish species for our analyses.…”

Section: Sampling Design and Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Stream community richness predicts apex predator occupancy dynamics in riparian systems

Holland

Schauber

Nielsen

et al. 2018

Oikos

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Streams and adjacent riparian habitats represent linked terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems that exchange materials and energy. Recognized relationships among apex predators and ecosystem biodiversity led us to hypothesize that these predators in riparian‐stream systems were more likely to be found in sites with high stream quality, defined as increased ecosystem function and integrity. In our freshwater study system, river otter Lontra canadensis and mink Neovison vison play critical roles as apex predators. We used multi‐season occupancy modelling across three sampling years (2012–2014) to compare aspects of the stream communities that explain occupancy dynamics of river otter and mink, including their interactions with other semi‐aquatic mammals. We surveyed for semi‐aquatic mammals at 77 sites in 12 major watersheds in southern Illinois, USA (44 526 km2). Naïve occupancy differed among years but generally increased for river otter, and remained high (≥93.5%) for mink. Increasing substrate availability increased detectability of river otter, whereas mink detection varied by survey period. Occupancy of river otter during the initial survey period was higher in sites closer to reintroduction points. Probability of colonization of river otter was positively associated with macroinvertebrate index of biotic integrity, fish species richness, and beaver presence. Sites with high species richness of fish families preferred by river otter also had increased river otter persistence. Mink occupied sites with increased fish richness, muskrat presence and mussel community index. Taken together, our results show occupancy of both mink and river otter were predicted by aspects of prey diversity and presence, indicating the importance of community composition in occupancy dynamics of riparian predators. Ultimately, these relationships suggest that habitat heterogeneity and system stability are important to apex predator site use. However, the relative role of bottom–up and top–down forcing in stream systems remains to be resolved.

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Section: Sampling Design and Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sampling Design and Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stream community richness predicts apex predator occupancy dynamics in riparian systems

Holland

Schauber

Nielsen

et al. 2018

Oikos

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“…They have been known to consume between 35 to 52 kg of total biomass per month (Dekar et al, 2010). Prey of otters is diverse and includes fish, amphibians, crustaceans, small mammals, reptiles, birds, mollusks, clams, and aquatic insects (Hoffmeister, 1989;Hofmann, 2010; Barding and Lacki, 2012). Otters have even preyed upon alligator snapping turtles (Macrochelys temminckii; Ligon and Reasor, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Summer Diet Characteristics of North American River Otters (Lontra canadensis) in Central Illinois

Fretueg¹,

Martin²,

Widga³

et al. 2015

The American Midland Naturalist

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North American river otters (Lontra canadensis) frequently visit latrines where they deposit urine, feces, and anal secretions as olfactory signals. River otter scat was collected from latrines to identify prey at the Emiquon Preserve and the Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge located along the Illinois River near Havana and Lewistown in Fulton County, Illinois. Remains of prey from dissected scats were compared to osteological resources to taxonomically identify the remains. Fish were present in 85.4% of the dissected samples. Common carp (Cyprinus carpio) were the most common fish preyed upon during the study, occurring in 69.8% of all dissected samples. Crayfish were present in 77.1% of samples. Amphibians, insects, filamentous algae, green-winged teal (Anas crecca) or blue-winged teal (A. discors), and muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) were also consumed. The minimum number of individuals (MNI) consumed was also determined based on the prey remains present. The results of a two-tailed Fisher's exact test demonstrated there were significant differences in the percentage of prey consumed by otters at Emiquon and in previous studies conducted in Whiteside County, Illinois, and Alberta, Canada.

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“…diet, DNA, Lontra canadensis, metabarcoding, river otter Diet is an important ecological component for apex predators like the North American river otter (Lontra canadensis; hereafter river otter). River otters are key predators in aquatic systems (Melquist and Dronkert 1987), and prey upon a diverse group of fish, reptiles, amphibians, mollusks, and crayfish species (Anderson and Woolf 1987, Crait and Ben-David 2006, Cote et al 2008, Barding and Lacki 2012, Feltrop 2016. Additionally, river otters will feed on mammals and birds (Toweill 1974, Crimmins et al 2009, Penland and Black 2009, Wengeler et al 2010, Barding and Lacki 2012.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…River otters are key predators in aquatic systems (Melquist and Dronkert 1987), and prey upon a diverse group of fish, reptiles, amphibians, mollusks, and crayfish species (Anderson and Woolf 1987, Crait and Ben‐David 2006, Cote et al 2008, Barding and Lacki 2012, Feltrop 2016). Additionally, river otters will feed on mammals and birds (Toweill 1974, Crimmins et al 2009, Penland and Black 2009, Wengeler et al 2010, Barding and Lacki 2012). River otters follow optimal foraging theory (Thompson and Stelle 2014) and select large slow‐moving prey when it is available.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Diet of the North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) in North Carolina using 2 methods

Sanders,

Spear,

Black

et al. 2023

Wildlife Society Bulletin

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River otters (Lontra canadensis) are key predators in North Carolina's aquatic systems, but they are often seen as competitors by anglers and fish hatcheries. River otter diets typically consist of fish and crayfish, but also include occasional herpetofauna, mammals, and birds. While standard diet studies focus on identification of prey through manual examination of stomach contents and feces, metabarcoding DNA analysis has become more popular to determine the presence or frequency of species that are often missed, misidentified, or underestimated. We collected river otter carcasses from licensed trappers and fur dealers across North Carolina from the 2009–10 trapping season through the 2015–16 season. We conducted necropsies and analyzed the stomach contents using standard observational methods and metabarcoding DNA analysis. We manually examined 522 river otter stomachs, of which 377 contained prey items. Decapods (crustaceans) were identified in 41% of stomachs and made up similar percentages within each Furbearer Management Unit (FMU). The order Perciformes composed the majority (62%) of fish prey across all stomach samples. Coastal Plain river otters primarily consumed crustaceans (50%) and fish (40%). Piedmont and Mountain river otters consumed fish (32% and 42%, respectively) most often followed by crustaceans (62% and 50%, respectively). Prey selection was similar between the sexes. Out of 368 samples, metabarcoding DNA examination was able to reliably match 164 prey items to species, 5 classes, 18 orders, 25 families, and 42 genera. Fishes made up 33% of the identifications, particularly Perciformes (13%), Cypriniformes (7%), and Siluriformes (5%). Twelve percent of identifications was made up by Amphibia, split evenly by Anura and Urodela. No birds or reptiles were detected in the Mountain or Piedmont FMUs, and no mammals were detected in the Coastal Plain or Mountain FMU. Overall, river otters in North Carolina consume a large variety of prey that varied regionally. The manual examination provided identifications that were not provided by the DNA examination (i.e., crayfish, brown snakes), while the DNA examination provided a more accurate identification of the broad array of prey items. To understand the composition of annual river otter diets we encourage managers to expand research to evaluate river otter diets year‐round and incorporate additional noninvasive methods (e.g., scat surveys) throughout the year.

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Winter Diet of River Otters in Kentucky

Cited by 7 publications

References 11 publications

Stream community richness predicts apex predator occupancy dynamics in riparian systems

Stream community richness predicts apex predator occupancy dynamics in riparian systems

Summer Diet Characteristics of North American River Otters (Lontra canadensis) in Central Illinois

Diet of the North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) in North Carolina using 2 methods

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