The Eurasian otter can once again be seen in the city’s coastal habitats, according to a group of local environmentalists, who announced their discovery in a Facebook post.
The group, known as Chief of Macau Ecology, said “Since September 2024, we have found a total of 20 faecal samples and one footprint record of the Eurasian otter in the coastal habitat of Macao.”
It added: “These biological traces prove that some of the natural coastal habitats in Macao are still important feeding and resting places for Eurasian otters, and this discovery adds another ray of hope to the conservation and recovery of the Eurasian otter population in the Pearl River Estuary.”
[See more: Is Macao’s environmental authority wrong about dolphin habitats?]
It has been more than a decade since traces of the mammal were last seen locally, blamed by environmentalists on “drastic reduction of natural coastline and wetlands” as a result of the city’s urban expansion.
However, the Chief of Macau Ecology group believes that the SAR has benefitted from ongoing otter conservation efforts in the neighbouring city of Zhuhai.
The Eurasian otter is a mostly nocturnal, amphibious mammal that can weigh up to 10 kilograms when fully mature, achieving a length of 120 centimetres. It is considered a top predator in freshwater ecosystems.
