This month we're looking at how we can better coexist with sea otters. Check out the video to see what you can do to help share the coastal environment with these ecosystem heroes.
Special Thanks to CDFW and Sea Otter Savvy for providing images and support.
Video Transcript:
Sea otters are adorable, and they are also ecosystem heroes.
Sea otters are a keystone species - they help maintain a balanced ecosystem.
Sea otters were traditionally hunted for their fur and became federally protected in the 1970s after their population plummeted.
Worldwide, numbers have slowly recovered but they still face threats from humans.
Shootings, boat strikes, entrapment in fishing traps and nets, and indirect threats like oil spills, pollution, loss of kelp forests, and harmful algal blooms are huge threats to sea otters.
We are working to coexist with sea otters by funding research and outreach, banning gillnets, limiting pollution, and broadening protections.
You can be sea otter savvy by viewing sea otters from a safe distance, respecting the nap, reducing your plastic use and disposing of trash properly, and driving your boat at a safe speed where sea otters play and live.
Armed with little information, we can share the coastal information respectfully and peacefully with sea otters!
