Sea otters are one of nature’s most fascinating creatures, beloved for their playful personalities and critical role in marine ecosystems. From their dense fur to their impressive tool use, these ...

Their fur is so soft it almost led to their extinction, but otters’ recovery has been a boon to Pacific kelp forests, a key habitat for other sealife Sea otters use their agile, grippy forepaws to ...

I’m sure you could guess the most prevalent difference between river otters and sea otters. Yes, one species lives in freshwater, while the other lives in marine environments. But did you know that ...

An invasive species had taken over ecosystems across the West Coast and was threatening to dominate another one in Monterey County, California, when ecologist Rikke Jeppesen began her research two ...

The California sea otter, once hunted to the edge of extinction, has staged a thrilling comeback in the last century. Now, a team of scientists has discovered that the otters' success story has led to ...

Southern sea otters living along California’s coast are struggling in warmer seas, with new threats and changing food sources. They, like the other two sea otter subspecies, are classified as ...

In Monterey Bay, California, southern sea otters face food scarcity as their preferred prey, urchins and abalone, have declined due to climate change, overfishing and other environmental factors. To ...

Otters are carnivorous mammals in the Lutrinae branch of the diverse Mustelidae family, which includes weasels, badgers, stoats, wolverines, and ferrets, among others. There are 13 living otter ...

When Jessica Fujii was in kindergarten, she drew a picture of her future. In a “What do you want to be when you grow up?” booklet, she skipped ballerina and veterinarian, and wrote down something else ...