Patterns of river otter (Lontra canadensis) diet and habitat selection at latrine sites in central British Columbia

I used an Information Theoretic Model Comparison approach to investigate the relationships among river otter (Lontra canadensis) diet and temporal/spatial parameters and habitat characteristics and the presence, consistency, and intensity of otter activity. Data were collected every two weeks at latrine sites used by otters in central British Columbia from 2007-2008. In general, a stable-isotope analysis agreed with the results of a scat content analysis showing a dominance of fish in the diet of otter and a small contribution from other prey sources. I generated predictive models for the presence of salmonids, minnows, and insects in otter scat and for number of otter scats at latrine sites. For latrine selection, I found that habitat characteristics at the fine scale were better at predicting the presence of latrine sites. In general, otter activity was influenced by parameters that described vegetation cover at the fine scale and by characteristics of aquatic habitat beneficial to fish at the coarse scale.