Your email address will not be published. Description. 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. Sea otters sleep on their backs while floating in the water. To prevent drifting away, they often wrap themselves in kelp or hold hands while resting. They live in offshore forests of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera), and spend most of their active time foraging below the canopy. The SciCom class got to spend a day with three researchers monitoring a population of sea otters bobbing, diving, and playing in the waters directly behind the aquarium. Fun Otter Facts for Kids. Check out our range of fun otter facts for kids. The Sea Otter Research and Conservation program at the Monterey Bay Aquarium has been studying sea otters since 1984. © 2021 Awesome Ocean. Did you know? Sea otters can stay underwater for 5 minutes, and river otters can hold their breath for even longer - 8 minutes! When hunting for prey, Marine otters will dive as deep as 30 to 40 m. A baby marine otter is a 'pup’ or ‘whelp'. Otters are found on every single continent in the world except for … Sea Otter Facts For Kids. Fish and Wildlife Service. However, sea otters are typically marine mammals. Most sea otters measure less than 50 inches. They prey on crustaceans by using pairs of rocks to crush the outer shells, easily accessing the soft flesh inside. It has short tail and webbed-feet with retractable front claws. Sea otters are foragers that eat mostly hard-shelled invertebrates, including sea urchins and a variety of clams, mussels, and crabs. They are known to eat clams, mussels, crabs, octopus, sea urchins, snails, and fat innkeeper worms. Sea Otter Facts: Families. Log in. They have an interesting method of eating their prey. Although they are capable of surviving on land, sea otters often spend their whole lives in the water. Few sea otter species emerge on land either for giving birth or for resting. North American Sea Otters are larger than Asian otters. The otter is a carnivorous mammal in a branch of the weasel family called Lutrinae. Sea otters mainly live in river basins. Here are five fun facts you otter know: Sea otters have the densest fur in the animal kingdom, with up to one million hairs per square inch of their body! 15 fun facts about dolphins for Dolphin Awareness Month, Family review of the Fairfield Inn & Suites Downtown Chicago/Magnificant Mile. In summer, when sea otters spend almost all their time in the sea, the way they sleep on the water looks very touching. Photo by U.S. To prevent drifting away, they often wrap themselves in kelp or hold hands while resting. The length of a sea otter is four feet in California whereas in north sea, the height is slightly more than this. Sea otters will eat virtually anything they can get their little paws on. The size of the California (or southern) sea otters is about 4 feet. Fact1: Sea otters have incredibly fast metabolisms; a 60-pound adult sea otter eats at least 15 pounds of food (25% of its body weight) each and every day. Average life span in the wild is up to 12 years except for sea otter who can live up to 20 years. All Rights Reserved. Sea otters can hold their breather underwater for more than 5 minutes, and river otters can hold theirs for more than 8! A group of resting otters is called a raft. The northern sea otters can weigh as much as 100 pounds. A newborn pup needs constant attention and will stay with its mother for six months until it develops survival skills. Not only do they hold each other’s paws when resting but they may also wrap themselves in that kelp or seaweed to keep themselves safe. Photo source: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com. Usually, a single baby (called a pup) is produced following 4 to 5 months of pregnancy. The sea otter has long whiskers and water-repellent coat that insulates the animal from freezing water. Approximately 90% of the world’s sea otter population lives in coastal Alaska. Fun Facts for Kids. With a relatively large lung capacity for it's size, a sea otter can hold its breath for 5 minutes, but most dives are two minutes or less in duration. It ranges from 250,000 to a million hairs per square inch, according to the Defenders of Wildlife. 10 Facts About Otters You Should Know Instead Of Trying To Hook Them. Almost all otters have webbed feet, some more webbed than others, and they can close off their ears and nose as they swim underwater. Sea otters have built in pouches of loose skin under their forearms to stash extra prey when diving. Their fur is the densest of any animal with about 100,000 hairs per square centimeter. Cute! 9. Sea otter is the heaviest mustelid with the weight measuring at 22 – 45 kg (49 – 99 lb) in males; and the length measures around 1.2 – 1.5 m (3 ft … The sea otter spends most of its time in the water but, in some locations, comes ashore to sleep or rest. Fun Facts About Sea Otters. The males of this subspecies weigh around 65 pounds while females are 45 pounds in weight. The fur is responsible for insulating them and keeping them warm because they do not have a layer of blubber to keep them warm and protect them from the outside environment. For one of the smallest marine mammals on Earth (yet the largest member of the weasel family), the sea otter has racked up quite a few superlatives: 10. OTTER FACTS FOR KIDS! Most sea otters hunt and eat by themselves but then stay together in this group or raft when resting. Currently, sea otters can be found in approximately two-thirds of their historic range, although they remain an endangered species. Nowadays, sea otters are beloved due to their appearance and charismatic personalities. We all know that sea otters are pretty darn adorable, but here are a few fun things you may not know about them: Sea otters sleep on their backs while floating in the water. One reason for this is their lack of a blubber layer. They use the rock as a table against which they smash their shelled prey to g… 2. Which is quite impressive considering they can live up to 23 years! Photo source: http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals. There are many cute and cuddly animals out there, but not many can upstage the sea otter. “Male sea otters typically grasp the female from behind and bite her face, and this rough behavior was associated with the deaths of about 11 percent of dead sea otters … The sea otter is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. The sea otter spends most of its time in the water but, in some locations, comes ashore to sleep or rest. 10. This thick fur keeps the animals warm but unfortunately has led to over-hunting by … It is made up of a waterproof top layer and a short underlayer, which can contain as many as one million hairs per square inch. They are one of the few animals that use tools! Sea otters are unique in the otter family as the only species to give birth in the water. 5. When resting or sleeping, sea otters … Sea otters eat sea urchins & other invertebrates that graze on giant kelp. 8. The babies sleep on their mother’s chest, touching the head to her chin, and the adult individuals gently but firmly hold each other’s front paws. A rescued sea otter pup is taken to Alaska SeaLife Center to be treated. I recently found out that sea otters fall asleep holding paws and my heart has never been so full. Without this, they rely on their two fur layers to keep them warm. A sea otter’s pelt is the thickest of any mammal. The Sea Otter is the only species that have a shorter and less muscular tail. Warm air trapped in a sea otter’s fur keeps them warm in chilly waters.When otters dive, they seal their ears and nose.The word otter comes from Old English and Indo European root words that were also used to create the English word for water.Otters have the densest fur in the world. We wouldn't go drifting away on one of these rafts, however! Sea otters are provided a varied diet while in human care. Sea Otter Facts for Kids. Here are 5 fun & easy to remember facts about sea otters. Otters have a nasty bite! Male Otters are called boars, females are sows, and the offspring are pups. Otters have to eat vast amounts of food every day, which takes up a significant portion of their time. 2. Additional resources 1. Sea otters are a medium-sized member of the Mustelidae family. Funny! Sea otters can reach speeds of 1.5 km/h (0.9 mph) on the surface and 9 km/h (5.6 mph) while diving. 3. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies them as “endangered.” Their numbers were once close to 300,000, but hunters pursued them for their pelts. Hunted nearly to extinction by the fur trade, sea otters are endangered and currently exist in only a portion of their historic range. Sea otters are very social animals that can live in groups made up of hundreds of individuals. * Sea otters are a federally protected endangered species. This makes up for its lack of blubber in the cold Pacific water. Singapore is hooked on cute otters Otters have become a common sight in garden city Singapore, with a family otters seen casually taking strolls at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park, Toa Payoh, and even in St Andrew’s Junior College. Learning Colors! Learn where the otter lives, what they eat, what a group of otters is called, the names of various otter species and much more. Other Fun Facts. Here are some fun facts about sea otters. The sea otter can live its entire life without leaving the water. Following are a few other interesting facts you might not know about sea otters: 1) Sea otters are of the smallest marine mammals that are native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Sea otters are just as full of interesting characteristics as they are full of cuteness! 9. On an adult animal, there are an estimated 650,000 hairs per square inch. Its ears and nostrils are closed down in water. Otters eat 15-20 percent of their bodyweight daily. The sea otter (Enhydra lutris) is rare, completely marine otter. If otters fascinate you, below are some interesting otter facts. Here are five fun facts you otter know: Sea otters have the densest fur in the animal kingdom, with up to one million hairs per square inch of their body! Sea otters are commonly spotted on WWF’s Alaska tours. 1. A group of sea otters is called a raft. So if you weren’t on board with these loveable animals before, welcome to the club! The name for a group of these animals is a 'romp,’ ‘bevy,’ ‘family,’ ‘lodge,’ or ‘raft'. Fun Facts. 5. Cuteness! Sea otters eat 25 percent of their body weight in food every day. Sea otters generally forage close to shore in depths shallower than 18 meters (60 feet) but are capable of diving to depths of 90 meters (300 feet) or more. Sea otters use rocks to crack open shellfish and clams to eat. It is native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Among the endangered are the sea otters along the Californian to Alaskan coasts, which are threatened by "environmental pollutants and disease agents." They have very thick fur – near about 250,000 to one million hair per square inch. Otters consume mainly fish but many people think that they eat plants and berries. Fact1: Sea otters have incredibly fast metabolisms; a 60-pound adult sea otter eats at least 15 pounds of food (25% of its body weight) each and every day.That’s the same as an average teenager eating 120 hamburgers. When otters dive, they are able to seal their nose and ears. Groups of sea otters are called ‘rafts’. Sea otter is the heaviest and the second smallest aquatic member of weasel family. Here are some fun facts about sea otters. Sea otters don’t have blubber or fat to keep them warm like other marine mammals. In California, the weight of a female is 45 lbs and of a male otte… They are definitely meat eaters. Fact2: Weighing between 30 and 100 pounds, the sea otter is the world’s smallest species of marine mammal. Sea otters are equally active both night and day. Upon returning to the surface, they float on their backs, with the rock on the stomachs. 7 FUN FACTS ABOUT OTTERS! Its fur is the densest of any animal on Earth—an estimated 1 million hairs per square inch. This inc… Generally, the male sea otters grows from 3.11 to 4.11 feet in length and weighs around 49 to 99 pounds. A raft may have only ten sea otters but may also be a group of up to a thousand! Otters like to stick together, so when they sleep they will wrap themselves in seaweed and float together in a group. Even a baby sea otter can stay warm on the open ocean, but they do need some help from their mothers. Sea otters’ diet includes sea urchins, crabs, mussels, and clams, which they’re known to … National Geographic: North American River Otter 3. Fun Facts about Sea Otter! Sea otters are the smallest marine mammal species. Sea otters inhabit temperate coastal waters with rocky or soft sediment ocean bottom. Sea otters have the densest fur of all mammals with up to 1 million hairs per square inch. They usually weigh between 7 to 31 pounds (3 – 14 kg). Read on and enjoy our interesting information about otters. National Geographic: Sea Otter 2. 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