A newborn pup needs constant attention and will stay with its mother for six months until it develops survival skills. The sea otter is the largest member of the weasel family, yet the smallest marine mammal in North America. Sea otters are carnivores in the family Mustelidae —a group of animals that also includes terrestrial and... Habitat and Distribution. In California, research has found that sea otters also enhance seagrass beds, and in Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park, sea otters’ expansion into the area marked a gradual return of a more diverse ecosystem and an exciting moment in colonization efforts. Pictures & Facts On The Iconic Animals Of North America, With FREE Printable Worksheet, Best North American Wildlife Field Guides: Recommended Books On The Wildlife Of North America, Christmas Animals: Animals Associated With Christmas From All Around The World. Sea otters are generalist predators that consume over 200 species across a spectrum of rocky and soft substrates. Sea otters can spend their entire life in water. Adult sea otters typically weigh between 14 and 45 kg (31 and 99 lb), making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals. Weight of otter depends on their breed. Sea otters can five to 250 feet (76 meters) to forage for food. Sea Otters that are found in river settings tend to have slender, serpentine bodi… Sea otters have been found to play a pivotal role in the habitat and marine life that inhabit a kelp forest. Though sea otters spend most of their lives at sea, they occasionally haul out on shore. Mothers will continue to float on their backs, nurse their young and teach them to swim and hunt. Sea otters in the United States received additional protections with the passage of the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act in the 1970s. The sea otter's dark brown fur is the finest and densest of any animal fur. On an adult animal, there are an estimated 650,000 hairs per square inch. Historically, Sea otters could be found from Japan, along the coast of Siberia, down through Alaska, British Columbia and the eastern North American coast. Upon returning to the surface, they float on their backs, with the rock on the stomachs. They will hang on to a dead otter and continue to rape its corpse. Otters have to eat vast amounts of food every day, which takes up a significant portion of their time. Four different species of otter live in Central or South America, another three in South and Southeast Asia, two in sub-Saharan Africa, and one in Europe. North American Sea Otter is also more slender than other otter breeds. I recently found out that sea otters fall asleep holding paws and my heart has never been so full. Sea otters have been known to stay submerged for more than 5 minutes at a time. Sea otters eat 25% of their body weight in food every day. Sea otters are unique in the otter family as the only species to give birth in the water. Floating Behavior Sea otters often float at the water's surface, lying on their backs in a posture of serene repose. The sea otter has long whiskers and water-repellent coat that insulates the animal from freezing water. See more ideas about otter love, otters, sea otter. 10. Sea otters’ diet includes sea urchins, crabs, mussels, and clams, which they’re known to crack open with a rock and eat while floating in the water. Get ready for some awesome otter facts and photos. Sea otters are social animals and raft together in groups of a few dozen to hundreds of animals. What Thick Fur You Have . They are also preyed upon in the wild by sharks, bears, eagles and killer whales. Mountain Gorilla Facts, Pictures & Information, Jurassic Dinosaurs List: Discover The Dinosaurs That Lived In The Jurassic Period, Animals That Start With X: List With Pictures & Facts, Wild Dog Species List: All Types Of Wild Dogs, With Pictures & Information, Porcupine Facts: Species, Where Found, Diet, Predators, Lifestyle & More…, Freshwater Biome Facts. Southern sea otters breed and pup year-round, while northern sea otter pups in Alaska are usually born in the spring. Even a baby sea otter can stay warm on the open ocean, but they do need some help from their mothers. See “Sea Otter photo” and read interesting facts about sea otters and their special role in the marine ecosystem. Hand-holding keeps the otters … Aug 29, 2019 - Explore respjpn's board "Sea Otter Facts & Activities" on Pinterest. To keep warm, sea otters spend a large portion of their days grooming and conditioning their fur. Sea otter facts. Sea otters are foragers that eat mostly hard-shelled invertebrates, including sea urchins and a variety of clams, mussels, and crabs. Otters have strong teeth and a powerful bite. Sea Otter Facts & Information Sea otters are members of the weasel family (Mustelidae). Their bodies are insulated by a thick fur coat and not by blubber as in other marine mammals. They usually weigh between 7 to 31 pounds (3 – 14 kg). Thirteen different species exist around the globe. 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The coat of the sea otter has ‘pockets’ under the front legs which are used to stash food during dives, much like the ‘pouches’ in the cheeks of hamsters during foraging. Sea otters have a long tail accounting for nearly a third of their body length and four webbed, clawed feet, which they use to navigate land and catch, break, and eat their prey. ActiveWild.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for website owners to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon stores. I’m dead serious. Thirteen different species of otter exist all around the world. This ancient religion considered otters to be the dogs of the river or sea and had strict rules forbidding the killing of otters. 2. All Rights Reserved. Sea otters inhabit temperate coastal waters with rocky or soft sediment ocean bottom. Sea otters use rocks to remove prey from their shells. Check out this otter-worldly info. Sea otters are part of the weasel family. From feeding habits to ecosystem maintenance, sea otters are more than meets the eye. Sea otters are vulnerable to oil spills which can drastically impact the insulating power of their fur, and destruction of kelp forests which are key foraging grounds. Sea otters are members of the weasel or mustelid family. Sea otters … Otters do not have blubber, instead air is trapped within their fur to keep them warm. U.S. and international law protects threatened sea otters. A “keystone species” is a species that is critical to how an ecosystem functions because it has large-scale effects on the communities in which it lives. Diet. Currently the southern sea otter population is estimated at just above 3,000 animals. Once at the surface, they often eat by placing the food on their stomachs, and then placing a rock on their stomachs and then smashing the prey on the rock to open it and get at the flesh inside. Active Wild Pinterest Active Wild Facebook. Researchers have seen concentrations of over 1,000 otters floating together. River otters are much smaller -- averaging 10-30 pounds -- with a cylindrical body and small head. At birth, the weight of a pup is 3 to 5 pounds. They have very thick fur – near about 250,000 to one million hair per square inch. Sea otters are part of the weasel family. Sea otters inhabit temperate coastal waters with rocky or soft sediment ocean bottom. Sea otters live in small groups, usually separated into groups of adult males and groups of females, their pups, and several juveniles. Its ears and nostrils are closed down in water. Sea otters can often be observed floating on their backs on the surface looking very relaxed and chilled out. The Russian Sea Otter is found off the eastern coast of Russia and several have been reported in Japan. Diet analysis suggests that butter clams are their preferred prey in Southeast Alaska (La Roche 2020). 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