Eurasian otters in Kinmen can actually breed all year round, not just in winter, a new finding that serves as a reminder for otter conservation.

• Infrared automatic cameras set up by community patrol teams have recorded female otters in Kinmen out and about with their pups throughout the year, showing that they mate and breed in spring and summer as well, not only in winter as previously believed.

• Past understanding of the Eurasian otter's breeding season was largely drawn from European research, but Kinmen lies in the subtropics, where mild winter weather and a steady supply of fish and other food make the seasonality of breeding less pronounced than in Europe.

• Monitoring of reproductive hormones in captive otters at zoos has also confirmed that Eurasian otters can actually go into heat and breed year-round, and pups have likewise been recorded in Kinmen in autumn and winter.

• Scholars recommend that when planning conservation measures and construction work in Kinmen, officials should not merely avoid otter activity hotspots during specific months, but should maintain low-disturbance, otter-friendly measures year-round in the otters' breeding hotspots.

Outlook: Scholars will continue long-term observation of breeding patterns among Kinmen's otters, and this finding may prompt conservation and engineering authorities to adjust their disturbance-management rules to cover the whole year.