Defenders of Wildlife Blog

Sea otters rest wrapped in kelp beds along the California coast (c) Bruce J. Lichenberger

The tax deadline is looming, but there’s still time for Californians to help make a difference for threatened sea otters by donating as little as $1 to the California Sea Otter Fund on their state tax forms.

Though they once numbered in the hundreds of thousands, today there are fewer than 2,800 sea otters along the California coast. And with continuous threats of being poisoned by oil spills or other pollution, these charismatic critters are struggling to make a comeback.

In these tough economic times, donations that go to provide vital research dedicated to helping sea otters survive are more important than ever. That’s why Defenders worked with California lawmakers to establish the California Sea Otter Fund, giving California taxpayers the opportunity to contribute to the recovery of these animals just by entering $1 or more on line 410 of their California state tax form.

Each year, the Franchise Tax Board sets a target amount that the program has to raise in order to be on the form again the following year. For the last six years Californians have dug deep and donated enough for the tax check-off to return. This year, the tax check off must raise $273,025 — so if you’re in California, as you finish filling out your tax forms this year don’t forget about our furry aquatic friends.

2012 was a better year than usual for California’s sea otters, with the spring census showing a slight increase in the total population for the first time in four years. In December, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also officially abandoned their failed no-otter zone, allowing sea otters to expand their natural range to California’s southern waters without the threat of being moved back north across an invisible line in the Pacific Ocean. Between pollution and disease, sea otters still face many serious challenges, but with your help we can work to keep them on this path to recovery.

Click here to find out more on sea otter conservation and Defenders’ work with the California Tax Check-off.

Not in California? You can still help save sea otters by adopting one of these marvelous marine mammals. Not only will you be sharing your appreciation for this imperiled species, but you’ll also be helping to support Defenders’ work on their behalf. Click here to visit our Wildlife Adoption Center.

Sierra Weaver, Senior Staff Attorney

Sea otters rest wrapped in kelp beds along the Pacific Ocean during California Spring (Credit: Bruce J. Lichenberger)

Like many animals under the protection of the Endangered Species Act, the southern sea otter has had a long and bumpy road to recovery. In the 18th and 19th centuries, this population of otters was hunted to near extinction, bringing a population of approximately 16,000 down to an estimated 50 individuals, and struggling to rebound to today’s estimated to 2,800. Though the population’s historic range once stretched from Alaska all the way down the Pacific coast to Baja California, it now spans only a fraction of the distance. And even after hunting ended, otters have remained threatened by other human activities like oil drilling and commercial fishing. Clearly, this was a species that needed protection from humans. The question was how.

Back in the 1980s, oil spills were considered the greatest threat to sea otters on California’s central coast. The small marine mammals depend on their thick fur to keep them warm in cold ocean water, and contact with even a small amount of oil can cause death by hypothermia. In an attempt to guard against this threat to the southern sea otters, a plan was hatched to create a second colony of otters in a safer location offshore, on California’s Channel Islands. The plan involved a couple of elements. First, move a number of otters out to San Nicolas Island to try to start a population that policymakers believed could help guard against a mass die-off in the event of a catastrophic oil spill. Second, because otters were being moved closer to the lucrative fishing grounds of Southern California, the plan also created a “no otter zone” from which the otters would be removed if they were discovered there. Quite simply, the decision was made to encourage otters to inhabit some places, but keep them out of others.

Between 1987 and 1990, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) moved 140 sea otters from the coast of California out to San Nicolas Island. Unfortunately, many of the otters did not survive the initial move, and many others left San Nicolas to return to the mainland. Not only did the otters not take well to being moved to the island in the first place, but they fared similarly badly when moved out of the “no otter zone.”

A southern sea otter yawns.

Because of the harm to otters caused by a program that was supposed to help them, FWS stopped moving otters in the early 1990s to reevaluate the program. For several years, only a few otters were reported in the “no otter zone.” However, by 1998 the numbers began to increase — the otters had found their way back. In 2000, FWS determined that continuing to remove otters from the “no otter zone” was not only causing harm to individual otters that didn’t survive the move, but also likely to put the entire species at risk. These scientists determined — a decade after the translocation program was initiated — that the most important thing to sea otter recovery was range expansion, and that the “no otter zone” originally included in the translocation program was fundamentally inconsistent with the needs of the species. The otter moving stopped, but the regulations making most of Southern California technically “off limits” to sea otters stayed on the books, continuing to threaten otters with the specter of forced relocation.

For years, FWS has consistently found that otters need to move and expand their range if the species is to recover from its threatened status and find its way off the endangered species list. Despite this scientific knowledge, however, the policy response has been excruciatingly slow. But yesterday, FWS finally took action, signing a final rule that formally puts an end to the “no otter zone,” ending the experiment in active management of otters on California’s coast, and truly allowing natural range expansion to occur. And you deserve some of the credit too: during the public comment period for the policy change, Defenders’ supporters sent more than 11,600 comments to FWS to show their support for the repeal of the “no otter zone.” This is a fantastic, if long- awaited outcome from FWS, and one that we hope will allow southern sea otters to inch closer to recovery.

Sea otters frolic off the coast of California.

With their expressive faces and soft, furry bodies, sea otters exude charisma. But when it comes to survival, cute and cuddly doesn’t always cut it.

As few as 2,800 sea otters call California’s waters home. The population descends from a single remaining colony of about 50 hidden amid the crags of Big Sur, out of sight from fur hunters who nearly wiped out the world’s entire population by the early 1900s. Today they are at risk from pollution-caused disease, oil spills and fishing gear.

But even in such small numbers, these marine mustelids—related to weasels, ferrets and minks—have a profound influence on the marine ecosystem, keeping crucial kelp forests healthy by eating urchins that can overgraze. The otters’ diverse diet includes clams, crabs and mussels, which they cleverly crack open with a rock—every otter keeps one tucked away in a chest pouch.

Unlike most of their blubbery brethren, sea otters have fur—the densest of any mammal at up to 1 million hairs per square inch—to keep the chilly waters at bay. Because they can’t afford a bad hair day, much time is spent grooming their “do.” If their fur becomes soiled, it’s no longer waterproof and they can freeze to death. That’s one reason oil spills are so lethal.

Despite these amazing adaptations, California sea otters still need our help to keep their heads above water—so they can frolic and we can be charmed throughout this century and into the next.

Read more from the spring issue of Defenders magazine.

With the tax deadline looming there is still time for Californians to help make a positive difference for sea otters by donating as little as $1 to the California Sea Otter Tax Fund located on their state tax forms. With fewer than 2800 sea otters left along the California coast these charismatic critters are struggling to make a comeback and your donations will help fund vital research dedicated to helping sea otters survive.  With a target amount set by the Franchise Tax Board each year, the tax check off must raise $267,934 this year to return to the tax forms next year. So as you finish filling out your tax forms this year don’t forget about our furry aquatic friends. Visit www.saveseaotters.org to find out more on sea otter conservation and Defenders’ work with the California Tax Check-off.

A recent release from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) shows that 335 sea otters were found dead last year along California’s coasts. This news comes as a blow to sea otter recovery which has seen a decline in the 3-year population average over the last two years.

A trend that is of concern to scientists who monitor sea otter populations is that 2011 saw a large jump in the percentage of sea otters deaths that were caused by shark bites.  Most of the bites, despite ultimately proving fatal, were considered exploratory in nature as the sharks were looking for their preferred food of sea lion or seal but scientists are still unsure as to why there was such a large increase in these attacks.  Of more concern to scientists was the rise in the number of female sea otters that were killed since female deaths will have a greater impact on the population growth.

While sea otter deaths caused by shark bites occur every year it has been shown to be increasing over the decades.  In the 1980′s and ’90′s sharks were responsible for around 8% of sea otter mortalities. By the late 1990′s that number had risen to 15% but in 2010 and 2011 that number has jumped to 30%.

Californian’s can continue to help sea otter recovery efforts during the tax season by donating to the California Sea Otter Tax Fund located on the state tax forms.

You can read the full USGS press release here.

Sea otters don’t want roses or chocolates for Valentine’s Day.

Check out this video with our friend Philippe Cousteau to learn more about what you can do to help the threatened California sea otter.

If you live in California, the best way to show you care is to do your taxes early and donate to the California Sea Otter Fund, a vital lifeline supporting research and recovery programs for these furry marine mammals.

Californians must raise more than a quarter-million dollars this tax season for vital fund to reappear on tax forms again next year. Learn how you can contribute today at saveseaotters.org.