Otterly Surprising

One Giant river otter (Pteronura brasiliensis), doesn't mean a species has recovered from a local extinction. It is encouraging, however, that an animal that had gone unseen in Argentina since the 1980's, was recorded on a mobile phone by a kayaking Conservationist (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/may/25/a-huge-surprise-as-giant-river-otter-feared-extinct-in-argentina-pops-up-aoe). This species of otter was last spotted on the Bermejo river in NE Argentina's Chaco Province, more than 100 years ago. Its disappearance, in this country, was due to a combination of hunting and habitat destruction. Successful breeding of the species would have to occur, before one could be certain it had re-established itself in the Bermejo river park.