Sea Otters

Sea otters are marine mammals that live near coastal areas. They may not have the layer of blubber many sea creatures like them have, but they have thousands and thousands of hairs that cover them from head to toe providing heat insulation to maintain body temperature. They help maintain health of beach shore ecosystems. Meaning, they help keep other animals from devouring kelp and other related material for marine animals. The sea otters face a number of great dangers that put their species at serious risk. Not only do they face threats from other sea creatures, they face threats from other forces of their environment including oil spills, degradation of their habitat, and human activity.

Sea otters have a lifespan of roughly 15 to 20 years. This may not seem like a long time but when more people work together to make things better for them they can enjoy their few years in a safer environment. Many sea otters have issues at home where they live. They deal with run off from landfills which contaminate ocean waters. They are more likely to catch illness and diseases easily because of bacteria they live in that comes from toxic pollutants. Parasites are a common cause of death for sea otters with hundreds dying annually. Sea otters are precious creatures that many may not realize get little attention from others. There are organizations that work to help protect them and their environment but they are not able to do this on their own. The problem of losing sea otters continues to grow in certain parts of the world. Large numbers of otters are losing their lives to things that can be prevented. But why is there such a lack of interest for this animal? People may not know enough about them to take an interest. There are organizations that will help you adopt one or you can donate to efforts that keep their environments clean. Because they are an important part of the ecosystem their absence could cause problems for people on the main land. Yet, with their living environments being such a mess with bacterial illness setting in, they may end up dying off before any real work is done to save them. Sea otters are adorable cute animals but they are much more than just something to look at. They need help from humans if we expect to have a better life around the sea.