How river otters' terrible food hygiene benefits ecosystem health monitoring

Otter poop reveals they may be ecosystem engineers

The phrase “this place is a pigsty” might need to be replaced with “this place is an otter latrine.” Particularly the busy latrine of a North American river otter (Lontra canadensis). The small mammals have some questionable hygiene when it comes to food, eating, playing, and defecating all in the same place.  However, studying their less-than-pristine habits (and particularly what is in their poop) can help scientists detect future environmenta…

How river otters' terrible food hygiene benefits ecosystem health monitoring

North American river otters have terrible hygiene when it comes to their food. They eat, play and defecate in the same place. But their unhealthy habits make them ideal for detecting future health threats in the environment, according to scientists.

River Otters Thrive Despite Feces and Parasites During Feeding —

In the often overlooked habitats of the Chesapeake Bay, North American river otters are revealing critical insights into ecosystem health through a most unexpected means—their messy dietary and hygienic habits. Recent research conducted by Smithsonian scientists at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) in Edgewater, Maryland, has illuminated how these aquatic mammals, notorious for their […]