The Sea Otter

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The sea otter (Enhydra lutris) is entirely marine mammal native to the coasts of the eastern and northern North Pacific Ocean. The skin of this otter has always been keenly sought for by fur-traders and trappers, and it is owing to constant harassing by such people that the sea otter was almost extinct. International ban on hunting and serious conservation efforts have contributed to numbers rebounding but the sea otter remains classified as an endangered species.

The sea otter is member of the family Mustelidae, a diverse group that includes the other otter species and terrestrial animals such as weasels, badgers, and minks. This otter spends its entire existence in salt water, and has been found as far as twenty miles from land. Adult male sea otters typically weigh between 49 to 99 lb (49 to 99 lb). Females are 31 to 73 lb (14 to 33 kg), making them the heaviest members of Mustelidae family, but they are among the smallest marine mammals. The sea otter differs in many ways from its other relations. It possesses large flipper-like hind feet, a short tail, and small, delicate forefeet. The hind paws alone are used for swimming, the delicate and sensitive forefeet being employed in locating the otter's food, consisting mostly of marine invertebrates such as sea urchins, mussels, crabs, and other shell-fish, which it hunts for amongst the rocks at the bottom of the sea.

The female usually produces a single young one, weighing 3 to 5 lb (1.4 to 2.3 kg) and the pup is born with a thick coat of baby fur. Lying on her back in the sea, the mother sleeps and suckles her baby in that position.

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