Sea Otters 101

BY E.Z.A.

Cute? Check. Tough? Totally. Aggressive? Not really, but when it comes to mating, look out! Sea otters are just the best. With thick brown coats of fur, they have a body length between 55 and 130 cm- fairly large for an otter. They even hold paws while they sleep! Their young are called pups or kittens. They can be found on the coasts of the Pacific ocean, and North America.

While these creatures seem amazing, they are actually very endangered. Their habitat is being lost to oil spills and fishing nets thanks to - surprise, surprise - human activity in the area. They are being introduced to new diseases their bodies don't know how to fight, resulting in undeserved death. They are frequently killed for their fur to be turned into jackets and coats. Shark attacks are also a big reason for their disappearance. While they seemed to be coming back in California, the numbers of their population have begun to go down again, for unknown reasons. There are only about 3,000 sea otters left in the wild today.

It's obvious that these guys don't deserve a fate like that. They're really smart. They can play basketball. They are one of the few animals who use tools: they have special rocks that they keep in their fur pouch to crack open shellfish and oysters with! Sea otters are extremely intelligent.

Tough, bright, and adorable, sea otters are definitely amazing. To learn more about sea otters, visit this page.