The Southern Sea Otters
of Monterey Bay, CA, U.S.A
A Southern Sea Otter and her pup rest in Monterey Bay after a tiring day of “swimming lessons,” for the young pup.
December, 2019
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Southern Sea Otters are one of my favorite animals to photograph. To me, they are a powerful symbol of the ocean’s ability to recover and a call to action: there is much more work to be done.
A powerful symbol: Souther Sea Otters were hunted nearly to extinction, their numbers dropping from 16,000 individuals in the Pacific Ocean, to a mere 50 individuals in the 1900’s. Today, due to the passing of laws to protect these animals, otters have made a spectacular recovery! Their numbers have reached 3,000! Although not nearly a full recovery, a wonderful sign that crucially important animals such as the otters are able to recover when given the opportunity. Wonderful organizations, such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Elkhorn Slough, Sea Otter Savvy, and more, have had monumental impacts on the sea otter recovery in Monterey County, California.
A call to action: In 2019, there was no indication of further population growth for the sea otters (Hatfield, B.B., Yee, J.L., Kenner, M.C., and Tomoleoni, J.A., 2019). Many otters are dying due to (great)white shark bite injuries, which is likely linked to loss of kelp forest and overfishing (Tinker, M.T., Hatfield, B.B., Harris, M.D., and Ames, J.A.,2015; Hatfield, B.B., Yee, J.L., Kenner, M.C., and Tomoleoni, J.A., 2019). Another large culprit in the plateau is pollution. Entanglement, toxic algal blooms, injuries, ingesting plastic, and a loss of food sources are just a few of the effects of pollution on these otters (Jessup et al., 2008).
See bottom of page for References.
Keep in mind that all of my otter photos are taken with a telephoto lens, and you should never approach a wild animal (for their safety and for yours)!
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So, why are sea otters crucial to the health of the kelp forest, the ocean, and humans?
Sea otters are critical to the health of the kelp forest because they play an essential role in controlling sea urchin populations (Randall et al., 2019). When overpopulated, sea urchins can destroy the kelp forest, destroying the home for thousands of animals in Monterey Bay, and beyond (Randall et al., 2019). The kelp forest provides sustenance (rockfish, salmon, squid, lingcod, mackerel, halibut, abalone) for millions of animals, including humans.
As it turns out, we are a lot more connected to sea otters than you may have initially believed.
“When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world.” —John Muir
References
Davis, R. et al., (2019). Future directions in sea otter research and management. Journal of Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2018.00510.
Hatfield, B.B., Yee, J.L., Kenner, M.C., and Tomoleoni, J.A., (2019). California sea otter (Enhydra lutris nereis) census results, spring 2019. U.S. Geological Survey Data Series. 1118, 12 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ds1118.
Jessup, D. & M., et al. (2008). Sea otters in a dirty ocean. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. 231. 1648-52. 10.2460/javma.231.11.1648.
LaScala Gruenewald, D. (2016). Surrogate-raised sea otters. https://www.montereybayaquarium.org/stories/our-surrogate-raised-sea-otters-are-helping-restore-a-wetland.
Tinker, M.T., Hatfield, B.B., Harris, M.D., and Ames, J.A. (2015). Dramatic increase in sea otter mortality from white sharks in California. Journal of Marine Mammal Science., v. 32, no. 1, p. 309–326, https://doi.org/10.1111/mms.12261.
Various. Harvard University (2020).The Health Impacts of Climate Change. Personal collection of Harvard University class, Cambridge, MA.
Visbeck, M. (2018). Ocean science research is key for a sustainable future. Nat Commun. 9:690. doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-03158-3.