River Otter Recovery Topic of Seminar at UW-NPS Research Station June 29

River otter recovery in the Rocky Mountains is the topic of the Harlow Summer Seminar Thursday, June 29, at the University of Wyoming-National Park Service (UW-NPS) Research Station. The facility is located at the AMK Ranch in Grand Teton National Park.

UW zoology and physiology Professor Merav Ben-David will present “Is protecting isolated populations enough? On the role of Yellowstone National Park in the recovery of river otters in the Rocky Mountains.” The event begins at 5:30 p.m. with a barbecue, followed by the 6:30 p.m. seminar. The events are free and open to the public, although a $10 donation is suggested.

Formerly called the AMK Ranch Talk Series, the Harlow Summer Seminar Series is named after retired UW Department of Zoology and Physiology Professor Hank Harlow, who helped make the UW-NPS Research Station a significant center for research and community outreach. Harlow began the popular weekly public seminars during the summer months.

By the early 1900s, river otters were extirpated from most freshwater systems in western North America due to overharvest and pollution. Remnant populations survived in the greater Yellowstone National Park region, mainly because of the establishment of the park in 1872. Despite improvement to water quality following the Clean Water Act of 1972 -- and limits on harvest since the mid-1950s -- river otter populations showed limited recovery in the Rocky Mountain region. Later, reintroduction efforts in several states led to the successful establishment of river otter populations.

However, otter recovery in many Wyoming watersheds has not yet occurred, Ben-David says. Ben-David and her research team conducted a formal survey of otters across the state using camera traps and noninvasive genetic sampling.

Ben-David, a wildlife ecology professor since 2000, will present findings on the research that stretches across Wyoming, Utah and Colorado headwaters.

The UW-NPS Research Station provides a base for university faculty members and government scientists from around the world to conduct research in the diverse aquatic and terrestrial environments of Grand Teton National Park and the greater Yellowstone area.

The research station, a cooperative effort between UW and the NPS for the past 66 years, supports research in Grand Teton National Park and surrounding areas. The research station is located on the AMK Ranch historic district on a peninsula extending into Jackson Lake near Leeks Marina.