It\u2019s otter this world.<\/p>\n
A North American river otter was spotted scurrying in the brush along the Bronx River this summer \u2014 marking the species\u2019 first sighting in the borough in roughly a century.<\/p>\n
The slippery critter was captured in June in just one blurry, motion-activated camera shot, with its distinct cone-shaped tail pointed at the lens, the Wildlife Conservation Society Bronx Zoo<\/a> announced<\/a> Wednesday.<\/p>\n A North American river otter was seen scurrying along the Bronx River in June. Wildlife Conservation Society Education Department\/RJ Hawkins<\/p>\n The small animal\u2019s head is covered by leaves \u2014 but the shot was clear enough for researchers to determine it was a rarely-seen river otter.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I first reviewed the images, I could hardly believe what I was seeing,\u201d said RJ Hawkins, a scientist affiliated with the WCS\u2019s Bronx Zoo.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cKnowing this may be the first documented river otter in the Bronx in generations was an incredible moment. It shows why long-term wildlife monitoring and environmental restoration efforts matter.\u201d<\/p>\n River otters have all but vanished<\/a> from the Big Apple over the past century, despite once being as common as gray squirrels and rats.<\/p>\n The aquatic mammal population was completely driven out of the five boroughs at the turn of the century due to \u201cunregulated harvest, habitat destruction, and water pollution.\u201d<\/p>\n By the 1990s, it was only found in the western half of the Empire State, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation<\/a>.<\/p>\n The picture marks the first documented sighting of a river otter in the Bronx in a century. Getty Images<\/p>\n Although river otters have slowly returned to the Hudson Valley and even Long Island, the slick creatures had not been seen in the Bronx until Hawkins\u2019 sighting. <\/p>\n While researchers warn that the otter\u2019s visit to the Big Apple could have been just a pitstop on a longer journey, they are also hailing the sighting as a good omen.<\/p>\n The water creatures have become known as indicators of healthy freshwater ecosystems because of their dependence on clean water and abundant fish.<\/p>\n The sighting is an indicator that the Bronx River is becoming cleaner after decades of neglect, researchers say. Getty Images\/iStockphoto<\/p>\n \u201cThis otter\u2019s return is a gift, not just to the\u00a0Bronx\u00a0River\u00a0but to the communities that have fought for 50 years to bring this\u00a0river\u00a0back to life,\u201d said Javier Lopez, Interim Executive Director of the\u00a0Bronx\u00a0River\u00a0Alliance.<\/p>\n \u201cFor too long, the\u00a0Bronx\u00a0River\u00a0was treated as a neglected afterthought, and our communities bore the burden of that neglect. Today, this otter reminds us that when we invest in nature, nature responds, and when communities lead, change is possible.<\/p>\n \u201cThis isn\u2019t simply the story of one animal. It\u2019s the story of an urban river coming back to life.\u201d<\/p>\n River otters eat fish, frogs, crayfish, insects and turtles, according to the Smithsonian\u2019s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute<\/a>. <\/p>\n