90% of all sea otters live on the coast of Alaska. Jennifer Kennedy, M.S., is an environmental educator specializing in marine life. 2. They have long whiskers, small ear flaps, and two small black eyes. They have an interesting method of eating their prey. While sea otter populations increased after legal protections were put in place, there have been recent declines in sea otters in the Aleutian Islands (thought to be from orca predation) and a decline or plateau in the populations in California. Otters have a dense fur made up of a combination of undercoat and longer guard hairs that provides insulation, but it must be almost continuously maintained. The answer varies by species and location. To be fair, it’s more keepy-uppy than juggling, albeit keepy-uppy with two or three rocks at a time. FactsKing.com / Animal Facts / 8 Top Predators of Sea Otters that Eat Sea Otter Sea otters are sea mammals native to the eastern and northern parts of the North Pacific Ocean. Sea otters eat 25% of their body weight in food every day. Sea otters are part of the weasel family. Sea otters are carnivores in the family Mustelidae —a group of animals that also includes terrestrial and... Habitat and Distribution. In appearance, sea otters are stouter and have larger rib cages, smaller tails and blunter muzzles than other species of otters. National Geographic: Sea Otter 2. It ranges from 250,000 to a million hairs per square inch, according to the Defenders of Wildlife. 3. Sea otters will eat virtually anything they can get their little paws on. They prey on crustaceans by using pairs of rocks to crush the outer shells, easily accessing the soft flesh inside. When oil coats a sea otter's fur, air can't get through and the sea otter can't clean it out. Fully 10 percent of a sea otter's day is spent grooming its fur. Sea otters are the only fully aquatic form of otters, but they share features with the others such as thick fur and short ears. Sign in to manage your newsletter preferences. Check out this amazing video of incredibly cute otters using rocks to break open their food: Sea otters have many ways of tugging on our heartstrings. To swim faster they use their webbed feet for propulsion and undulate their bodies. Swollen, murky waters also make swimming more difficult, forcing the animals onto busy roads. Sea Otter Facts California’s southern sea otter has been listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act since 1977. The mother will produce milk, hunt and teach the pup how to dive for food until the youngster is five to eight months old and can fend for itself. Their sleek, streamlined bodies are perfect for diving and swimming. SeaOtters.com is dedicated to raising awareness about California’s threatened sea otters and inspiring the public to view wildlife responsibly. Here are few life facts you should know about Sea Otters! In California, the weight of a female is 45 lbs and of a male otte… Mating is polygynous—one male breeds with all the females in its breeding territory. The species has no seasonal fur variation, so expends far more heat and energy swimming and diving in colder waters despite its dense, double-layered coat. Otter is a common name for a carnivorous mammal in the subfamily Lutrinae. Sea otters, particularly mothers and pups, sometimes hold hands while floating on their backs. While mothers and pups are usually solitary, sea otters can form social groups of up to a few dozen. Sea otters are a medium-sized member of the Mustelidae family. Most critically, they are a keystone species, meaning that their continued existence is required for several other species to survive. An Amazing Animal: 3 Sea Otter Facts. The otters lie on their backs and pat the stones into the air, catching them and rolling them skilfully around their chests and necks. In environments where sea otter populations have been reintroduced, tall kelp forests are flourishing. Female sea otters become sexually mature at about 3 or 4 years of age; males do so at 5 or 6 although most males don't establish a territory until they are 7 or 8. Because they are not exposed to predators, and do not have to forage for prey, they are provided with environmental enrichment in their habitat to keep them entertained. Floating on its back, it opens mollusks by smashing them on a stone balanced on its chest. They spend the majority of their lives on their backs, only flipping over onto their fronts when greater speed is required. The infamous Exxon Valdez spill killed at least several hundred sea otters and affected the sea otter population in Prince William Sound for well over a decade, according to the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council. As predators that are near the top of the food chain, otters are hugely important for keeping their environments balanced. Many are mostly solitary apart from the breeding season, whereas others live in groups all year round. Sea otters often float at the water's surface, lying on their backs in a posture of serene repose. Sea otters can reach 9kph underwater, North American river otters are faster at 11kph, and the maximum speed of the giant river otter is an impressive 14kph. Sea Otter Sea otters are a keystone species, meaning their role in their environment has a greater effect than other species. 2. They have furry bodies, whiskered faces, and a propensity to lay on their backs and float on the water, a behavior that humans perceive as evidence of fun-loving. They like to eat sea … The behaviour is likely to be linked to the animals’ use of rocks to detach prey from the seabed and break it open. They have webbed feet, water-repellent fur to keep them dry and warm, and nostrils and ears that close in the water. 4. The most gregarious by far are sea otters, which are polygynous (males mate with multiple females). Fun Facts for Kids. Sea otters often float at the water's surface in forests of kelp, or giant seaweed, and entangle themselves to keep from moving in the rolling sea. But habitat loss and hunting have brought many populations of other otter species crashing down around the world, especially in more tropical locations. Sea otters dive to rocky reefs, where they collect invertebrates and also a large rock. Yet, sea otters do possess the fine, dense fur coats characteristic of the Mustelidae. Try 3 issues of BBC Wildlife Magazine for just £5! Their nickname is the “sea beaver.” They keep warm because of their incredibly dense fur–with up to nearly 1,000,000 (one million) hairs per square inch! Their forefeet are small and dexterous with retractile claws and the flipper-like hind feet are broad and webbed. Sea otters are provided a varied diet while in human care. Because they are dependent on their fur for warmth, sea otters are heavily affected by oil spills. Sea otters can spend their entire life in water. They’re renowned for preying on hard-shelled marine invertebrates, including abalones, sea urchins, clams, mussels and crabs, usually fracturing the shells with their teeth. For the Love of Sea Otters. Other than natural predators, threats to sea otters include pollution, diseases, parasites, entanglement in marine debris, and boat strikes. This was stopped by the establishment of the International Fur Seal Treaty in 1911. When sea otter populations are abundant, bald eagles prey primarily on fish and sea otter pups, but when sea otter populations declined in early the 2000s due to predation by an increased population of orcas, bald eagles preyed more on marine birds and had more offspring because of the higher caloric content of a seabird diet. The U. 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