What's the Scoop on Sea Otters?

The Southern Sea Otter

By: Zachary Sutcliffe

Imagine this...

You're kayaking in Morro Bay, the waves are calm, and you decide to work your way towards a romp of otters to take pictures. The otters are as cute as ever, playing with their clams as they float on their backs and smile. You come back over the next  few years to see these otters again, but you begin to notice less and less otters. You begin to wonder why. 

Well look no further, because I am here to tell you all about the conservation efforts towards the southern sea otter!

Description and Ecology of Organism

The Southern Sea otter (Enhydra lutris nereis) is native to the California coast that ranges from Half Moon Bay to Point Conception. The average adult male sea otter is approximately 4.5 feet long and 65 pounds, while the adult female sea otter averages at 4 feet long and 45 pounds. Equipped with padded forepaws with claws for feeding and grooming, a uniform tail and hind legs for swimming, in addition to dense underfur for insulation, the southern sea otter is well adapted for its aqueous surroundings. The sea otters have a typical lifespan of 10-15 years. Sea otters typically feast on fish. Females are able to reproduce at age 3, and males at age 5. The high times of reproductivity are from late February to early April. 

Geographic and Population Changes

In the 18th and 19th centuries the otters faced extinction due to exploitation. In 1911 through the International Fur Seal Treaty, populations increased again in the Kuril Islands, Kamchatka Peninsula, and the North Pacific rim to the Prince William Sound. The otters found southeast of the Prince William Sound are in Washington, Alaska, British Columbia, and California. Although populations have been decreasing, the distribution of otters has no signs of being decreased.

Listing Date and Type of Listing

The Southern Sea otter was listed as threatened on January 14th, 1977 in the California/Nevada Region.

Cause of Listing and Main Threats

Due to the otters limited population size and distribution, in addition to its potential jeopardy to the habitat and population due to oil spills, the otter was listed as threatened. Petroleum development problems such as oil spills are one of the biggest factors in the mortality of sea otters. Other factors include vessels accidentally striking the otters, and otters getting stuck in traps set up by fisheries. 

Description of Recovery Plan

The strategy of the recovery plan is to determine the cause of the increased mortality, to mitigate that cause, and to allow the number of sea otters to increase to the point where their is no lack of genetic diversity. The plan highlights vessel management to reduce oil spills, and a shift away from management zones and relocation management to courses of action that hopefully will be more advantageous in the protection of sea otters than the translocation program. The overall goal of the recovery plan is to successfully increase the otter populations to the point where they can be delisted from the Endangered Species Act.

Personal Action

As personal action, I think that the biggest way I can affect the saving of the sea otters is by purchasing less oil, or in other words buying less gas. By buying less gas, I am helping to prevent against oil spills. Although this does not seem as though it is helping that much because is it very indirect, if more people followed this action, the southern sea otter population could experience noticeable increases in population and distribution. I hope everyone reading this blog will join me in our efforts to save the southern sea otter by purchasing less gas, so ride a train, or carpool to school or work, or even trade in that car of yours for a bike! Together we can save the otters. The first step, try looking at the sites below for more information!

Check out these sites for more info!

http://www.seaotters.org

http://seaotters.com/research-conservation/

Works Cited

Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.usgs.gov/blogs/features/files/2014/09/2014-Spring-Survey-Figure51.jpg>.

N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.glogster.com/greengeekster/history-fair/g-6mamfe2mciud89d8bt721a0>.

N.d. Web. <http://superbeefy.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/sea-otters.jpg>.

"SEAOTTERS.COM – POWERED BY CUTENESS™." SEAOTTERSCOM POWERED BY CUTENESS RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2015. <http://seaotters.com/sea-otters/>.

"Species Profile for Southern Sea Otter (Enhydra Lutris Nereis)." Species Profile for Southern Sea Otter (Enhydra Lutris Nereis). N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2015. <http://ecos.fws.gov/tess_public/profile/speciesProfile?spcode=A0A7>.