scientific name

Enhydra lutris

size

Length: max 6 ft. long, usually 40 - 60 in.
Weight. males 60 - 70 lbs. • females 35 - 64 lbs.
Body & Head: 3 - 4 ft.
Tail: 22 -33 in.

characteristics

Color: black to dark brown except grayish or creamy head, throat and chest.
Feet: claws semi-retractable • fingers agile • hind feet webbed and flattened into broad flippers.
Body: does not have subcutaneous layer of fat but rely on air trapped in fur for warmth.
Fur: dense
Teeth: only carnivore with four incisor teeth in lower jaw.

behavior

diurnal • males territorial especially during breeding season (return year after year) • females social with no strict hierarchy • not migratory but may take "long trips" of 20 - 150 miles any time of year • spend night in kelp beds anchored by wrapping kelp around body to keep from drifting • use rock (or other hard object) to pry or break open urchins, abalone or other hard food.

reproduction/life span

Life span. wild 25-30 yrs • captivity 25-40 yrs
males mate with female in his territory (harem)
Gestation. 4 - 8.5 mos. (6.5 average) - implantation may be delayed.
Offspring: 1 pup, twins rare • Northern population come to shore for birth, Southern may give birth at sea or on shore • birth weight: 3 - 5 lbs. • pups have light "natal pelage" that is replaced by sleek dark fur at ~3mos. • pups born with open eyes and full set of milk teeth • length of pup dependency, 2 - 11 mos. (varies based on geographical location • birth interval ~1 - 2 yrs.
Sexual Maturity: 3 - 5 yrs.

diet

Wild. wide variety of invertebrates (clams, crabs, urchins snails, octopus, mussels, sea stars), may eat fish • individuals seem to have food preferences.
Zoo. clams, crabs, pollock fillets, urchins and clam strips.

habitat/range

Three subspecies (subtle differences) • Russian Sea Otter: Kuril Islands and the eastern coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula north to the Commander Islands • Alaska Sea Otter (Northern): Aleutian Islands to Prince William Sound and southward to Washington State • California Sea Otter (Southern): Central California coast (historically from northern California to Baja California).

status

US Threatened • CITES App II • California Sea Otter range is slowly expanding • Alaska Sea Otter populations are decreasing.