EMB ERJ 170/175 ER/LR
Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Hazardous Material Violation; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Weight And Balance
General None Reported / Taken
Human Factors
On push back from the gate in ZZZ Aircraft X; I was taking with the tug driver reference the previous flight XXXX from ZZZ2 to ZZZ; which I operated; about the live animal in the forward cargo. That is when the tug driver said that's why they put the dry ice in the aft cargo on flight XXXX. I was not informed of the dry [ice] being put in the aft cargo. If the tug driver had not told me that they off loaded dry ice from my previous flight I would not have known.
About an hour after landing at ZZZ after operating from ZZZ2; ramp agent at ZZZ had told us during casual conversation that on the flight inbound to ZZZ there had been 'a bunch of dry ice in the rear cargo compartment'. This was due to a live animal (a laboratory rat) being transported in the FWD cargo compartment. There was no dry ice on the cargo manifest; and I only heard about the dry ice from the Ramper. The load sheet did indicate that there was 250 lbs of cargo in the AFT cargo bay. Upon speaking to the company's HAZMAT Manager; neither he nor company were able to confirm that there was dry ice.
E-175 flight crew reported being notified that their previously completed flight they unknowingly  transported undocumented Dangerous Goods.