Cute Endangered Sea Otters

Sea otters have been endangered Ever since 1977. Sea otters are endangered due to hunting, fishing, etc. The number of sea otters is decreasing. That’s not a good thing. A sea otter is one of the smallest marine mammals. Sea otters exhibit a variety of adaptations due to the challenging marine environment. Most of a sea otters life is spent in the ocean. They swim with they’re belly’s up. An otter has to eat at least 25% of its body weight each day just to stay alive.sea otters eat urchins, abalone, mussels, clams, crabs, snails and about 49 other sea animals. An otters strong forelegs are used to locate and capture prey. Sea otters are continuously hunted for their luxurious pelts. This is reducing the population. Sea otters are keystone species. Key stone species are animals who are important to not only the environment but the ecosystem. They’re also extremely cute.

A group of sea otters is called a raft. Sea otters wrap themselves in seaweed to to keep themselves from drifting away from each other. Sea otters are the only otters to give birth in the water. The mom cuddles her baby’s while floating on her back to nurse the little otter. Then they quickly teach the babies to hunt by themselves. Sea otters groom themselves continuously. They they wash themselves after a meal using their teeth and paws. Their fur coat must stay clean to be waterproof. They have thick underfur that traps air to form an insulating layer against chilly waters. Sea otters are iconic sea creatures. Some fun facts about sea otters are that there are thirteen different species of otters around the world. 90% of all sea otters live on the coast of Alaska. They use rocks to open clams. They don’t have a layer of blubber like other marine animals. Sea otters are clever and cute animals.

Bibliography:

https://defenders.org/sea-otter/basic-facts

https://seaotters.com/sea-otter-natural-history/

https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/7750/21939518