Cub biometry, litter size and reproductive period of giant oters (Pteronura brasiliensis) at the Balbina Hydroelectric Reservoir, Amazonas, Brazil
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5597/lajam00203Keywords:
Amazon, Balbina Lake, Hydroelectric, Pteronura brasiliensis, ReproductionAbstract
According to the literature, giant otters produce one to six cubs at each gestation, with birth peaks occurring from the end of the flood season to the beginning of the low-water period. With the aim of describing some reproductive parameters of the giant otters living in a hydroelectric lake, 56 field excursions to Balbina Hydroelectric Reservoir, hereafter Balbina Lake, were carried out between September 2001 and September 2010 in order to gather information about cub weight and length, litter size and reproductive period of the species in that area. About 80% of the birth records occurred between September and December, characterized by the receding water season and the beginning of the dry season. The number of cubs per gestation varied from one to three animals (mean = 2; n = 36) and average weight and length of neonates were 316.25 ± 64.21g (n = 4) and 31.75 ± 4.86cm (n = 4), respectively. The reproductive period and the litter size produced by giant otters in Balbina Lake were within the range reported in literature for non-dammed areas, indicating that these reproductive parameters were not changed by the reservoir. The weight of cubs analyzed in the reservoir was in average 35% greater than the weight of captive newborn cubs reported in the literature. However, as the animals here analyzed were healthy, it is reasonable to assume
that they represent the weight of free-ranging newborn cubs. Artificial lakes had been reported in the literature as favorable environments for giant otters in Guyana, and the results obtained here seem to corroborate this hypothesis and show the plasticity of the species in its use of different habitats as long as the habitats are inside some category of protection, in this way minimizing additional impacts caused by an intense human occupation of the area.
References
Autuori, M.P. and Deutsch, L.A. (1977) Contribution to the knowledge of the giant Brazilian otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) (Gmelin 1788), Carnivora, Mustelidae. Zoologische Garten 47: 1-8.
Bozzetti, B.F. (2011) Caracterização de Habitat e Aspectos Reprodutivos da Ariranha(Pteronura brasiliensis, Zimmermann, 1780) no lago da Usina Hidrelétrica de Balbina, Amazonas, Brasil. M.Sc. Thesis. Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Manaus, Brazil. 76 pp.
Cabral, M.M.M., Zuanon, J.A., De Mattos, G.E. and Rosas, F.C.W. (2010) Feeding habits of giant otters (Pteronura brasiliensis) (Carnivora: Mustelidae) in the Balbina hydroelectric reservoir, Central Brazilian Amazon. Zoologia27(1): 47-53. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1984-46702010000100008
Carter, S.K. and Rosas, F.C.W. (1997) Biology and conservation of the giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis). Mammal Review 27(1): 1-26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2907.1997.tb00370.x
Davenport, L.C. (2010) Aid to a declining matriarch in the giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis). PLoS ONE5(6): e11385. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0011385
Duplaix, N. (1980) Observations on the ecology and behavior of the giant river otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) in Suriname. Revue Écologique (Terre et Vie) 34: 495-620.
Duplaix, N., Evangelista, E. and Rosas, F.C.W. (2015) Advances in the study of giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) ecology, behavior, and conservation: a review. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals10(2): 71-94. http://dx.doi.org/10.5597/lajam00200
Evangelista, E. and Rosas, F.C.W. (2011) Breeding behaviour of giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) in the Xixuaú Reserve, Roraima, Brazil. IUCN Otter Specialist Group Bulletin 28(A): 5-10.
Fearnside, P.M. (1989) Brazil’s Balbina Dam: Environment versus the legacy of the pharaohs in Amazonia. Environmental Management 13(4): 401-423. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF01867675
Groenendijk, J., Hajek, F., Duplaix, N., Reuther, C., Van Damme, P., Schenck, C., Staib, E., Wallace, R., Waldemarin, H., Notin, R., Marmontel, M., Rosas, F.C.W., De Mattos, G.E., Evangelista, E., Utreras, V., Lasso, G., Jacques, H., Matos, K., Roopsind, I. and Botello, J.C. (2005) Surveying and monitoring distribution and population trends of the giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) – Guidelines for a standardization of survey methods as recommended by the giant otter section of the IUCN/SSC Otter Specialist Group. Habitat 16: 1-100.
Laidler, L. (1984) The behavioural ecology of the giant otter in Guyana. Ph.D. Thesis. University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. 296 pp.
McTurk, D. and Spelman, L. (2005) Hand-rearing and rehabilitation of orphaned wild giant otters (Pteronura brasiliensis) on the Rupununi River, Guyana, South America. Zoo Biology 24:153-167. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/zoo.20042
Oliveira, G.C., Barcellos, J.F.M. and Rosas, F.C.W. (2007) Age estimation in giant otters (Pteronura brasiliensis) (Carnivora: Mustelidae) using growth layer groups in canine teeth. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 6(2): 155-160. http://dx.doi.org/10.5597/lajam00120
Oliveira, G.C., Barcellos, J.F.M., Lazzarini, S.M. and Rosas, F.C.W. (2011) Gross anatomy and histology of giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) and neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis) testes. Animal Biology 61(2): 175-183.
Pedroso, N.M. and Santos-Reis, M. (2009) Assessing otter presence in dams: A methodological proposal. IUCN Otter Specialist Group Bulletin 26(2): 97-109.
Ribas, C.P. (2012) Grau de parentesco e relações sociais em ariranhas (Pteronura brasiliensis). Ph.D. Thesis. Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Manaus, Brazil. 83 pp.
Rosas, F.C.W. (2004) Ariranha (Pteronura brasiliensis) (Carnivora: Mustelidae). Pages 265-269 in Cintra, R. (Coord.) História Natural, Ecologia e Conservação de Algumas Espécies de Plantas e Animais da Amazônia. EDUA, Manaus, Brazil.
Rosas, F.C.W. and De Mattos, G.E. (2003a) Natural deaths of giant otters (Pteronura brasiliensis) in Balbina Hydroelectric lake, Amazonas, Brazil. IUCN Otter Specialist Group Bulletin 20(2): 62-64.
Rosas, F.C.W. and De Mattos, G.E. (2003b) Notes on giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) behaviour in the lake of Balbina Hydroelectric Power Station, Amazonas, Brazil. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 2(2): 127-129. http://dx.doi.org/10.5597/lajam00042
Rosas, F.C.W., Cabral, M.M.M. and De Mattos, G.E. (2008) Predation or scavenging of giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) cubs by lizards? IUCN Otter Specialist Group Bulletin 25(1): 100–103.
Rosas, F.C.W., De Mattos, G.E. and Cabral, M.M.M. (2007) The use of hydroelectric lakes by giant otters (Pteronura brasiliensis): Balbina lake in Central Amazonia, Brazil. Oryx 41(4): 520-524. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0030605307005121
Rosas, F.C.W., Zuanon, J.A.S. and Carter, S.K. (1999) Feeding ecology of the giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis). Biotropica 31(3): 502-506. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-7429.1999.tb00393.x
Rosas, F.C.W., Cabral, M.M.M., De Mattos, G.E. and Silva, R.E. (2009) Parental and alloparental care of giant otters (Pteronura brasiliensis) (Carnivora, Mustelidae) in Balbina hydroelectric lake, Amazonas, Brazil. Sociobiology 54(3): 1-6.
Santos, G.M., Ferreira, E.J.G. and Zuanon, J.A. (2006) Peixes comerciais de Manaus. Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis (IBAMA). Pró-Várzea, Manaus. 144 pp.
Schweizer, J. (1992) Ariranhas no Pantanal: Ecologia e Comportamento da Pteronura brasiliensis. Edibran-Editora Brasil Natureza Ltda, Curitiba, PR, Brazil. 202 pp.
Staib, E. (2005) Eco-Etología del Lobo de Río (Pteronura brasiliensis) en el sureste del Perú. Ayuda para Vida Silvestre Amenazada, Sociedad Zoológica de Francfort, Perú. 195 pp.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
