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Eurasian Otter
OTTERLY DELIGHTED to be here with you today - please vote for me! I'd be FURRY HAPPY to be sequenced!
My CV
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Latin name?
Lutra lutra
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UK population? (How many are in the UK?)
Hard to say - maybe around 12,000. Knowing the genome will help us find this out!
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Genome Size? (Genome size is the total amount of DNA contained within one copy of a single genome)
Ca. 2.5 Gb
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Most recent common ancestor to Homo Sapiens (presumed)
This was so long ago, I don't remember who that ancestor was. My mommy says it was probably a little weasel-like animal that lived more than 80 million years ago.
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I should be sequenced because...: Protecting otters, at the top of the food chain, helps us protect the whole freshwater system.
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About Me::
We run the Cardiff University Otter Project – click here for more about out us!
Some of our just published research: we found that UK otters actually have different dialects – in the odour of their poo! Here is a link to our paper.
Otters, like humans, need a clean environment. The otter is at the top of the UK food chain, making it especially important to study and protect it.
Fish is some of my favourite food!
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My Interview