Expedition in Guyana uncovers ecosystem time forgot threatened by oil and gas ...

29.11.09

An rapidity deep into Guyana's rainforest interior to find the endangered giant river otter—and collect their scat for genetic assay—uncovered much more than even this endangered charismatic species.

"Visiting the Rewa Head felt like we were walking in the footsteps of Wallace and Bates, seeing South America with its candid density of wild animals as it would have appeared 150 years ago," expedition member Robert Pickles said to Mongabay.com.

A PhD critic with the University of Kent and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), Pickles is currently studying the genetics of the giantess river otter in hopes to save this species from habitat loss. While the expedition, which also included tapir knowledgeable Niall McCann and local naturalist and tour operator Ashley Holland, found the necessary scat-samples that Pickles sought, they also took materials on the biodiversity of one of the Guyana's Shield's most untouched regions hoping to draw attention to a little-known extent threatened

Source: Mongabay.com