Description

The number of people living in the coastal zone continues to increase, thus requiring new approaches to conservation and public health efforts in these areas. Using a charismatic semi-aquatic mammal to introduce and promote conservation and health-related issues, we hope to engage with local communities across the Chesapeake Bay, especially BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) communities, to provide STEM learning and research opportunities for all ages. 

River otters possess several characteristics that make them an ideal flagship and sentinel species. Despite being a little elusive and primarily nocturnal, river otters are playful, social animals that are also top predators in the Chesapeake Bay. Along the shore they use special places called “latrines” to not only defecate and urinate, but also eat and, most importantly, communicate.  As a sentinel species, their status as an apex predator means that their scat can provide information about predator-prey dynamics, prey diversity, and food web interactions, including parasites that move through the food web (i.e., digenetic trematodes). Second, they are hosts for multiple parasites that infect both people and wildlife (e.g., Giardia spp., Toxoplasma gondii) and are sensitive to several environmental toxins, including many that are hazardous to human health (e.g., mercury, PCBs). Lastly, they are an accessible species for scientists to study. Researchers can identify latrines along the shoreline, then set up game cameras and collect scat from these locations to generate extensive data on river otter biology and ecology without causing any harm to the animals. These characteristics make river otters a compelling species for education, research, and conservation activities. 

The Chesapeake Bay Otter Alliance (CBOA) includes experts in mammalogy, genomics, parasite and disease ecology, fisheries and estuarine ecology, veterinary medicine, animal behavior, education, and Participatory Science from SERC, the Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, Frostburg University, Montgomery College, the Arundel Rivers Federation, Anacostia Watershed Society and private citizens. Our list is constantly growing and we are always looking for new partners! If you are interested in joining our alliance, please email Katrina Lohan at lohank@si.edu. 

Glossary:  

Flagship species: a species that is selected to be a symbol for a defined habitat, ecosystem, or environmental cause. 

Sentinel species: a species used to detect risks to humans by providing advance warning of a health threat