Sea otters and World Otter Day

Today is World Otter Day – a day to celebrate all otters and raise awareness about problems they’re facing.

Otters are known to be some of the cutest and most charismatic mammals on our planet. Sea otters (in our opinion) top the list, but they’re not just cute. They’re some of the top predators in the coastal areas they inhabit and serve an important role in keeping ecosystems, including kelp forests, in balance. Sadly, otters have disappeared from many of the places they’ve historically called home along the Pacific Coast.

The fur trade

Up until the late 1800’s, sea otters could be found from Alaska all the way down to Southern California and the Baja Peninsula. As a result of the Fur Trade, sea otters were hunted to extinction in Northern California, Oregon and Washington. A few survived along the coast of central California, and otters were later reintroduced in the Evergreen State.

Without otters, the ecosystems that rely on them in Oregon and Northern California – primarily kelp forests – are suffering. A lack of these marine mammals caused a boom in purple sea urchins (a sea otter’s favorite snack), and urchins in turn mow down on kelp. In some places, kelp forests have almost disappeared.

Kelp forests are an aquatic algae that provide the habitat and hunting ground for countless marine species – from gray whales all the way down to plankton. Kelp forests also store a whole lot of carbon, making them (and thus the otters) essential in our fight against climate change.

Protecting otters 

Knowing that sea otters are threatened, here are 3 policies we can embrace: 

1. Reintroduce otters in Northern California and Oregon. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service did a feasibility study and found that reintroduction of otters in Northern California and Oregon would be feasible and beneficial to otters and more. The report also noted there is no set plan (yet) to reintroduce them. 
2. Restore kelp. Without kelp, otters can’t hide, making them susceptible to shark attacks. Without otters, kelp-eating urchins multiply.  Washington state has a plan to protect 10,000 acres of sea kelp. California groups have proposed marine protected areas designed to help kelp grow. We need more of this. 
3. Keep southern sea otters protected (for now) by the Endangered Species Act. Until the otter can reclaim more of its historic range, it will need protection. But if otter reintroduction happens and kelp forests regrow, otters would ideally recover quickly, making ESA protections a thing of the past.

Finally, to truly honor the world’s otters, we should all attempt one more thing: play like an otter.