New Occurrence Data of Neotropical Otters Lontra longicaudis (Olfers, 1818), in Bahia State, Northeastern Brazil

Very little is known about the neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis) in the Brazilian state of Bahia. The purpose of this study was to record the number and location of sites where otters have been recorded in this area. Between 1988 and 2009, there were 29 records of otters in Bahia, including the collection of 13 living (9) and dead (4) otters. Of the live otters, 61.53% were adults and 38.46% pups. Five of these were males, five were females and the gender of three individual was not established. The majority (41,37%) of otter records were made in northern Bahia, and 31.03% were made in southern Bahia (31.03%). Eight records (27,58%) were made in the area around Todos os Santos bay, including seven sites where the species was not previously known to occur. No observations were made in the mid-west region of the state, so future studies are needed in this region.