Trophic variability of Lontra felina (Molina 1782) (Carnivora: Mustelidae) in two populations of Tacna (Peru) between August and December, 2006

Lontra felina (Molina, 1782) is the only sea otter of South America and is listed as endangered by the Peruvian laws. The diet of the L. felina was assessed by means of feces collected from two populations (36 feces Morro Sama and 30 from Quebrada Burros) in Tacna, Peru, between August and December 2006. Jaccard (I_j), Sorensen (I_s), Sokal & Sneath (I_ss) and Ochiai-Barkman (I_o-b) indexes were used to measure similarity between both populations and in between the winter and spring seasons. A total of 22 prey-species were identified with 59.1% corresponding to arthropods (n = 13), 27.3% to fish (n = 6) and 13.6% to molluscs (n=2). The diet of the Morro Sama's and Quebrada Burros's otters included 13 and 12 species, respectively. The diet from the two localities showed a low similarity (< 35%) because just three species were found in both places showing up the eurifagicgeneralistic rol. The similarity in the otter's diet between winter and spring was low, confirming the influence of seasonal change on diet.