Cardiff University Otter Project

After being unable to perform post-mortems since February we are finally back in the lab! The placement students have enjoyed being able to begin their lab training and we have even found some abnormalities already. Otter #4715 had a very enlarged gall bladder and gallstones.

Welcome to our final placement student Sorrel, completing our team for this year!

We would like to welcome our second placement student for this year. Sandy Huang

Otter📸: Freddie Montague

Today in celebration of #WorldRiversDay we wanted to recognise our river here in Cardiff - The River Taff, which has a supports a wide range of species including our beloved otters. World Rivers Day aims to spread awareness for rivers around the world, ensuring they continue to improve and thrive.

Wales Mammal Biodiversity Action Forum — Mammal Society WMBAF aims to strengthen and unite work to study and conserve mammals in Wales.

A new web page hosted by @mammalsociety.bsky.social aims to share links to mammal projects in Wales. Please contact us with details if you would like your project to be added to the page. The new web page can be found here: mammal.org.uk/current-rese...

Following on from our previous post about the status of mammals in Wales, we would like to highlight ‘WMBAF’. The Wales Mammal Biodiversity Action Forum is a network of individuals and organisations who work on mammals in Wales; our project lead Dr Chadwick is one of the members.
📸Ian Humphries

Wales Mammal Biodiversity Action Forum — Mammal Society WMBAF aims to strengthen and unite work to study and conserve mammals in Wales.

If you'd like to learn more take a look at Mammal Society's new page mammal.org.uk/current-rese... or read the paper publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/...

A third of our native mammals in Wales are now threatened with extinction. @mammalsociety.bsky.social have made this infographic highlighting the action needed to support Welsh wildlife as a whole. Our work on otters is just part of wider conservation efforts for mammals in Britain.

Otter #4461 can be found here, please take care the post features images from a post mortem. www.facebook.com/otterproject...

Following some post mortems on otters killed on railways, we conducted further research. We discovered a serious and often unseen danger to otters in the UK: electrified 'third rail' railway lines.

Holly, an Otter Project PhD student, attended the SETAC Young Environmental Scientists Meeting in York. It gathered young environmentalists to discuss toxicology and chemistry. She presented her research on lead contamination in Eurasian otters and Common buzzards as an indicator for pollution.

Introducing our new placement student Sophie Sharp who has just joined us for this year.

A huge well done to everyone who graduated last week, especially our amazing Otter Project alumni!

🦦Dr Emily O'Rourke and Dr Sarah Raymond (@sarahraymond.bsky.social) - PhDs
🦦Manus Leidi - MBiol
🦦Liberty, Oscar, Phoebe, and Scarlet - BSc's

We're so proud of you all!

#Graduation2025

Regulation and remediation of ‘forever’ chemicals This POSTnote summarises debates on regulatory approaches for addressing the environmental impacts arising from per- and poly- fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

Our own Dr Emily O'Rourke and Dr Elizabeth Chadwick are both contributors to this POSTnote, which will help inform the current parliamentary inquiry into the risks of PFAS in our environment: post.parliament.uk/research-bri...

Happy World Otter Day from all of us at the Otter Project! 🦦🌍 #WorldOtterDay #OtterProject #OtterConservation #TeamOtter #CardiffUniversity #lutralutra

📷 Otter photo: Freddie Montague-Dennis

Gu is joining the otter team for her PhD! 🦦
She holds a Bachelor's degree in Health Inspection and Quarantine from Guangdong Medical University (2018) and a Master's degree in Public Health from the University of Aberdeen (2023). Find Gu on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/qub-gu-ot....

Historical genomic variation of Eurasian otters (Lutra lutra) in Britain, from hunting trophies - Conservation Genetics Resources Genomic data from historical specimens can provide insights into populations and processes no longer evident from modern samples. Identifying viable sources of historical DNA is key to this. Here we a...

📣 I’m excited to be able to share our new publication! 📣 Our research on historical genomic variation 🧬 in Eurasian otters 🦦 (Lutra lutra) in Britain demonstrates the viability of hunting trophy specimens as sources of historical DNA.
doi.org/10.1007/s126...

🦦🐣 Happy Easter from the Otter Project!

The Otter Project is celebrating World Aquatic Animal Day today! 🌊🐾 This annual event raises awareness about aquatic animals and the vital roles they play in ecosystems worldwide🌍💧

Photo: Rob Williams

#WorldAquaticAnimalDay #OtterProject #SaveOurSeas

Hi! I’m Sandra and I am a PhD student. My research focuses on developing and testing new genomic markers for non-invasive monitoring of otters, as well as evaluating the genetic diversity of otter populations in Portugal. I'm working in collaboration with the Environmental Genomics lab (University of Coimbra) and the Molecular Ecology and Otter Project groups (Cardiff University). I'm thrilled to work with the amazing Otter Project team and contribute to the conservation of this charismatic mustelid!

Introducing Sandra, a Portuguese PhD student from the @cfe_engel research group at the University of Coimbra. Part of her research will be developed in collaboration with the Otter Project, at Cardiff!

@cfe_engel
@e3g_uc

#WildlifeConservation #Lutralutra #GeneticsResearch #GenomicsResearch #otters

Happy World Wildlife Day! 🦦 🍃☀️ In celebration, our placement students and volunteers did a survey looking for otter spraint and footprints.

Happy World Wildlife Day! 🦦 🍃☀️ In celebration, our placement students and volunteers did a survey looking for otter spraint and footprints.

Happy World Wildlife Day! 🦦 🍃☀️

In celebration, our placement students and volunteers did a survey looking for otter spraint and footprints.

Don't forget to sign up to our e-newsletter! The newest edition is coming out soon 🦦 !

Copy the link below to sign up: eepurl.com/cWWYlX

Photo: Jeff Chard

#newsletter #cardiffuni #eurasianotter #conservation #ukwildlife #ecology #cardiffuniversityotterproject #conservation #biosciences #otters

Chloe and Liz standing in front of the 16th International Otter Congress banner

Universidad Cientifica del Sur

We are excited to be attending the 16th International Otter Congress in Peru this week! #16thIOC #weloveotters #IUCN #otterspecialistgroup

Join the #WorldRecordAttempt to clean up the River Taff!
Athlete & environmentalist Kate Strong and Cardiff Uni’s Dr. Numair Masud are leading a #SpringCleanCymru 2025 event! We’ll be there—will you?
📆 21 March 2025
📍 River Taff (various locations)
🕙 11:00 - 14:00
#RiverCleanUp #OtterProject

In celebration of International Day of Women and Girls in Science, here's an hommage (or womanage?) to the many brilliant scientists I get to work with in our Cardiff University Otter Project (@otterproject.bsky.social)

PhD advert image with an otter in the background. The text reads: "PhD opportunity: Otters versus gadgets: how does passive sampling compare with sentinel species monitoring for evaluation of freshwater pollution? This is an exciting opportunity in partnership with the leading organisations and individuals in the field of otter conservation and freshwater management. Application deadline 07/01/2025."

Applications are open for a NERC Red-ALERT CDT PhD with us, in partnership with Cardiff University, @ukceh.bsky.social, and Natural Resources Wales.

More information here:
tinyurl.com/bdekfdtw

Ydych chi'n chwilio am leoliad is-raddedig yn y maes cadwraeth? Gyda ffocws ar waith labordy, dadansoddi data ac anatomeg?

Defnyddir ein data am samplau mewn ystod eang o ymchwil, sy'n arwain cadwraeth.

Gwnewch gais i ymuno â thîm Y Prosiect Dyfrgŵn fel cynorthwyydd ymchwil!

Looking for an undergrad placement in the conservation field with a focus on lab work, data analysis and anatomy?

Our data and samples are used in a range of research and help guide conservation.

Apply to join the Otter Project team as a research assistant and help with this important work!

Research We record observations, measurements and biological specimens that can be of great benefit to ecological research.

We facilitate studies of disease, chemical contaminants, and population genetics by taking biological samples providing a long term and widespread archive of samples from otters in the UK. For more information, please visit our website: cf.ac.uk/otter-project
Thank you for your continued support 🦦