Title: A Distribution Survey for Otters in Sikkim, India
KeyWords: Otters, Sikkim, India
Year of Publication: 2020
ISSN No: IUCN Otter Spec. Group Bull. 37(4) 2020
Author Name: Sunita KHATIWARA and Karma Choden BHUTIA
Details:
Abstract by Authors: Little research or conservation attention has been directed towards otter species in the rich biological assemblages in the Eastern Himalayan region of India. We present the findings from the first physical and social survey of otters in the Indian State of Sikkim. We searched riverbanks along the major river of Sikkim, the Teesta River, and three of its tributaries, the Rangit, Lachen and Lachung for scats, tracks, dens and latrines of otters. We quantified 1) bankside vegetation cover and substrate, and 2) levels of human disturbance to habitat. Awareness programs were conducted in villages and schools adjacent to surveyed river stretches, and residents were queried about their familiarity with otters. We found very little evidence of otter presence on the banks of major rivers in Sikkim, from either the physical or social surveys, which may be attributed to increasing habitat degradation and little familiarity with otters among local people, particularly in the younger generation