Sea OttersIn Kachemak Bay, Sea Otters provide some of the most fun and enjoyable wildlife interactions. These adorable critters are common in the bay and often more comfortable around boats, which leads to great opportunities for up-close viewing and photography, especially from a kayak.
Otters spend most of their time in the water, but can be seen from time to time hauled out in our harbor or on beaches across the bay to rest. They have the densest fur of any animal on the planet. Their two water-repellent layers of fur have almost a million hair follicles per inch of skin. This allows them to float effortlessly, either alone or with a group. While floating, they also eat! Average size otters eat more than a quarter of their body weight of sea urchins, crab, squid, octopus, and fish, every single day, which is up to 25 lbs. of food. They even have flaps of skin that serve as pockets under their forearms to store snacks from the ocean floor for later. Sea Otters have been known to dive up to 250 feet down to reach the sea floor to hunt and scavenge. |
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Most of the otters we see on the southern shores of Kachemak Bay are female, while the males are on the northern shores. These moms often have the fluffy pups, that are really adorable to see while cruising on the Lady of the Sea. The pup may nurse from the mother for up to a year, but will begin practicing hunting on the ocean floor by diving and bringing back brightly colored shells or pebbles. Sea otter mothers are some of the most dedicated around. They do 100% of care for the pup and can be seen grooming their pups for hours to keep their fur fluffy and full of air for insulation.
Otters generally hunt alone, but when they are resting they often form rafts of up to 100 individuals. They may sleep in these rafts, or sometimes will wrap themselves in kelp to keep from floating away. Rafts are usually same sex groupings and female rafts are usually smaller than male ones. On average there are 5 females for every male in a population. Although we often encounter what look like family groups of a couple adults with a pup, these extra adults are older females or females without a pup.
There are three subspecies of Sea Otter that live in separate populations: the Northern Sea Otter in Alaska, Washington, and B.C., the Californian Sea Otter on the coast of California, and the Russian Sea Otter living around Japan and Russia. Sea Otters in every location were hunted extensively for their fur in the 17 and 1800's. In the early 1900's an international ban on hunting was instated and it is estimated the population dipped from 150-300,000 to as low as a few thousand. Sea Otters are listed as an endangered species, but luckily their population has bounced back to over 100,000. Some recent decline in Sea Otter population in Alaska has been thought to be due to predation by Orca.
While they may not sport the majesty of a Humpback, the grace of a seal, or the might of a grizzly, Sea Otters are an integral part of the ecology of Kachemak Bay and make for some of the greatest wildlife viewing due to their familiarity with people and adorable habits.
Otters generally hunt alone, but when they are resting they often form rafts of up to 100 individuals. They may sleep in these rafts, or sometimes will wrap themselves in kelp to keep from floating away. Rafts are usually same sex groupings and female rafts are usually smaller than male ones. On average there are 5 females for every male in a population. Although we often encounter what look like family groups of a couple adults with a pup, these extra adults are older females or females without a pup.
There are three subspecies of Sea Otter that live in separate populations: the Northern Sea Otter in Alaska, Washington, and B.C., the Californian Sea Otter on the coast of California, and the Russian Sea Otter living around Japan and Russia. Sea Otters in every location were hunted extensively for their fur in the 17 and 1800's. In the early 1900's an international ban on hunting was instated and it is estimated the population dipped from 150-300,000 to as low as a few thousand. Sea Otters are listed as an endangered species, but luckily their population has bounced back to over 100,000. Some recent decline in Sea Otter population in Alaska has been thought to be due to predation by Orca.
While they may not sport the majesty of a Humpback, the grace of a seal, or the might of a grizzly, Sea Otters are an integral part of the ecology of Kachemak Bay and make for some of the greatest wildlife viewing due to their familiarity with people and adorable habits.