NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Large River Otter
Lontra provocax (Thomas, 1908)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The southern river otter (Lontra provocax), or South American river otter, is an otter species that lives in much of Patagonia. It is listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as an endangered species.
Wikipedia contributors, Southern river otter; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:08:42.558540+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Lontra provocax (Thomas, 1908)
- Name authority
- (Thomas, 1908)
- Common name
- Large River Otter
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Carnivora
- Family
- Mustelidae
- Genus
- Lontra
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderCarnivora Bowdich, 1821
- suborderCaniformia Kretzoi, 1938
- familyMustelidae G. Fischer von Waldheim, 1817
- subfamilyLutrinae Bonaparte, 1838
- genusLontra Gray, 1843
- speciesLontra provocax (Thomas, 1908)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Lontra. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Marine OtterLontra felina (Molina, 1782) | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Amazonian River OtterLontra longicaudis (Olfers, 1818) | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Common OtterLontra canadensis (Schreber, 1777) | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Lutra provocax Thomas, 1908 Thomas, 1908 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=621915 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3VZKT. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.