RESEARCH POSTER PRESENTATION DESIGN © 2015

www.PosterPresentations.com

All about the Sea OtterOtters are members of the mustelid family. Mustelids are one of the oldest and largest family order Carnivora, and appeared on the earth about 40 million years ago. Sea otters vary in size and color from the tiny weasel to the giant otter. The sea otter spends the majority of its time in the water, which can be fresh or salt water. The

sea otters front paws have retractable claws that are used too hold onto prey or for grooming. Otters rely on their fur to keep them warm. Their outer fur is used like a waterproof blanket protecting its inner fur which is what is used for insulation and warmth. The voters whiskers, paws, and eyes are all a big part of helping them to hunt for prey. They will use their whiskers, which are very sensitive to movement and help them to tell where fish are. Sea otters also dive for their prey and their ears have a special adaption to close while they dive to protect their inner ear. Their tail also acts like a rudder to help them navigate through water and quickly too if they need to hunt or run from a predator. The time of day when otters are most active can vary. Some otters are active during the day and some are active during the night and there are even some active and dusk and dawn, and yet even some are active at any time. This all depends on the type of species. (Yoxon, 2014)

Two Sea Otters www.defenders.org/sea-otter/basic-facts

Types of otters and their geographic rangeYou can divide an otter into two types of groups depending on their diet. The two types are based on if either they eat invertebrates including crustaceans (i.e. marine, sea otters, Asian small-clawed, southern river, and the species of Africa) and than the other type is the rest of the otters that eat mainly fish. These variations in what an otter eats is based on the shape of their teeth. (Yoxon, 2014) There are thirteen different types of otters of the world. There is the common or Eurasian otter, Lutra lutra (Europe)- Thus species has the widest distribution of all otters, but is now extinct in japan. The River otter, or North American otter, Lontra canadensis (North America)- Located in costal and inland ranges. The Sea otter, Enhydra lutris- lives along

coasts from north if Japan to Baja, CA. The next four otters are all located in parts of Latin America. The Giant otter, Pteronura brasiliensis is located in the Brazilian Amazon and their regions immediately around that, but are now extinct in Argentina. The Neotropical otter, Lontra longicaudis is located in inland and coastal Central and South America. The Southern River otter, or huillin, Lantra provocax is located in a very small geographical range inland and coastal southern tip of South America. The Marine otter or sea cat, Lontra feline is located in patches along the pacific coast only, from Peru to the southern tip. The next three types are located in Asia. The Hairy-nosed otter, Lutra sumatrans is located possibly inland only. Distribution on the Indonesia islands of Sumtra, Java, and Borneo is uncertain. The Smooth-coated or smooth otter, Lutrogale perspicillata is located in inland and coastal Pakistan, India, and south-east Asia, with a small population in the Iraqi marshes. The Small-clawed otter, Aonyx cinereous is located in inland and coastal south-east Asia, with a small population in southern India. The last three types are located in Africa. The Cape clawless otter, Aonyx capensis located on coasts and inland Africa south of the Sahara, not in the Congo basin, and in desert areas. The Congo clawless otter or swamp otter, Aonyx congicus is located in the Congo basin only, not along coasts. Lastly, the Spotted-necked otter, Lutra maculicollis is located inland only, in Africa south of the Sahara, but not in deserts. (Kruuk, 2012)

Types of sea otters of the world and their geographical ranges otterspecialistgroup.org

Sea otter habitats, diet, behaviorsMany different otter species live in many types of bodies of water from the ocean to a small stream. Like stated before some species live in fresh water and some live in salt water Some live exclusively in one or the other. The two types of habitats differ in a very relevant way to the otters. the ocean has many available resources that are easy to exploit. The otters have to also deal with the problem that salt water can have on them. One of the problems faced by having a habitat in the ocean is thermo-insulation. To enable the dense otter fur to fulfill its role as and insulator, the otter needs to be able to remove the salt that accumulates from being in the ocean. The different types of otters have their own ways of dealing with this problem. They have grooming behaviors that help remove the accumulated salt in their fur. Otters need to use freshwater if they are inhabiting an area filled with salt water and they do this by finding freshwater pools or underground water sources that are close to the shore. The need to have access to fresh water to help them groom themselves and get rid of the salt in their fur can be a limiting factor of having a habitat in the ocean. Otters have different types of behaviors for different things. Their food resources that are available to them can affect their behavior. Surprisingly, otters do not use huge displays of behavior but they more use olfactory communication that is key in how they behave and communicate. Otters have several ways of communicating through scent. One of the ways they communicate through scent is called sprainting. Spraints are usually the most used option and are very easy to identify. Spraints consist mostly of food remains such as fish bones, that are added to anal gland secretions, which produces and ‘ottery’ smell. Mating almost always takes place in water, based on observations of otters in captivity so there is thought that mating can take place almost anywhere. Many otters are polyandrous and polygynous. Provision and protection comes from the mother always. There are very important adaptive links between social behavior and the otters ecology. The most important social behavior and requirement is a very long period of dependence of otter cubs on their mothers. This is a very key feature in an otters social life. (Kruuk, 2012) Otters have a very high metabolism, which can be 50% hight than any land mammal of about the same size, which means that an otter needs to eat a lot (Yoxon, 2012). The standard diet for most otters is fish, crabs, and mollusks. most of all the different types of otters all want to take the slowest and most inactive prey, because it takes a lot of energy to go after fish especially in cold water. So it is very important that their prey is caught quickly. The reward of hunting is high because the otters diet is full of rich sources of energy.Throughout history all the different thirteen species of otters have shown themselves as very highly adaptable to their diet as well as conservative based on the available resources in their habitat.

Sea otter enjoying a meal of sea urchins. mountainandsea.org

Otters role in the ecosystemSea otters play a vital role and are a key species that help the environment and ecosystem tremendously. Their role in the environment has a great impact on other species in the ocean. As predators sea otters are very important in maintaining the balance of near-shore kelp ecosystem. Without sea otters preying on the undersea animals would devour all the kelp forests. The kelp forests are very important in providing cover for other animals and food for them as well. Sea otters also highly indirectly effect the use of lowering carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. As otters help maintain the kelp ecosystem they are playing a role in helping the kelp forests role in capturing carbon dioxide in coastal ecosystems (defenders.org 12/8/17).

Dead oiled sea otter after the Exxon Valdez oil spill. sea otters.com

Otters are unusual carnivores. They have been able to evolve to different habitats but that has left them at risk. Their lifestyle can be very risky and the animals that they eat for food are vanishing and they are highly exposed to human factors that changes their environment. Pollution, climate change, illegal fur trade, and over fishing are all huge risk factors threatening otters. Their amazing ability of what their fur does has made them a target for illegal fur trade. (Kruuk, 2012) In many parts of Asia and Africa otters have been exploited for their body parts, fur, and as pets. Asia is creating a huge problem with the decline in the otter population, where poverty is driving the hunting of otters (Yoxon,2014). Another risk that threatens otters survival is their population dynamics. Otters are considered a k-selected species which means they have few cubs, spend a lot of time and energy into investing into their maternal relationship with their cubs so that the cubs live longer, but the problem otters face is that because of their habitats, and human factors introduced into them the adults do not live as long as other species in the k-selected category. There are many toxic substances that are introduced into an otters environment and those toxins accumulate in their prey and than are of course create concentrations of those pollutants in their habitats. Mercury is a huge pollutant in an otters habitat. An otters genetic diversity is very low and that lack of diversity puts otters at risk for getting any different types of diseases which a lot has come from humans and their domestic animals. Otters also have to compete with fishers and fisheries in their environment taking their food source and adding harmful objects into the ocean as well. Catching fish for otters comes at high risk and high energy usage for an otter and with less and less readily available fish it makes the otters job much harder. The otter population have low reproductive rate and high mortality. (Kruuk, 2012) It is often said that otters give a good picture of how the environment is doing. An otters environment has to be in pristine condition in order for them to survive and since they are so sensitive to pollutants and such they are one of the first species to go away from an environment that is contaminated. (Yoxon, 2014) Another huge pollutant to an otters environment is from petroleum. Since sea otters live so much at the surface of the water the chemicals on the surface of the water from petroleum is absorbed through their fur. They can be affected by it through, inhalation, ingestion, and absorption. This immediate exposure to an oil slick is immediately exposed to an otter and contaminates them and through either one or all three ways that they can take in those toxins it leads to a huge impact on their organs and fur which as we know is a huge factor in their survival and productivity (seaotters.com 12/8/17).

Sea otter Mortality chart. Cause of death for sea otters. seaotters.com

Conservation EffortsPeople are far more conscious of the importance in caring for the environment and keeping our oceans, lakes, and streams cleaner. In the early 1980s, the Otter Trust and the nature Conservancy Council developed and reintroduction program for supporting otters and the huge decline in their population. IOSF has been caring for injured and/or orphaned otters and helping most of them be reintroduced back into their natural habitat. In America the river otter has been released back into many areas where they once went extinct. There also has been an increase in awareness of the decline of the otter population. especially in Asia, there have been programs and workshops being held to educate and help the people in that region to understand the huge problem with the otter population. IOSF has been the only organization that has been actively funding and caring for the help and protection of otters. IOSF wants to create a higher awareness of the otter population and bring more eyes on them and help educate more and more people in helping protect the otter population.(Yoxon, 2014) UC Santa Barbara has also made a research team that is working on knowing more about sea otters and what is causing the decline in their population. Their research has three main objectives 1) to better understand the reason for the current population decline, 2) to know their population dynamics better as well as know their seasonal movement patterns and behaviors, 3) to examine their relationships between their thermal and nutritional needs and requirements and how all of those determine their habitat requirements (coastalresearchcenter.ucsb.edu 12/8/17).

Sea otters are fascinating mammals. They are a very unique mammal in how they live, hunt, behave. It is interesting how many different otters there are in the world and how they evolve and adapt to the different environments they live in. You think that they are look the same but they can vary in size, shape, and color. There are 13 different types of otter species and all are spread over many different continents. It is interesting how many different places in the world they live. It surprised me how otters have maternal relationships and how strong those are. The mothers are responsible for caring for and protecting their cubs which I am sure plays a huge factor in how little a mother has in numbers for cubs. It takes so much time and energy for the care of cubs that a mother cannot have too many because of all that time and effort. It is also interesting how they as adults they do not live as long but they put so much effort into their cubs. The otters fur is such a huge aspect to their survival and productivity that is wasn’t aware of how important it was. Their fur is a thermo-inflator and that is what allows them to stay warm and dive, They also interestingly do not have a lot of research on their mating and doesn’t seem to be a big part of their life. They also do not have much aggression or displays of aggression unless it is with a mother protection her cub. They communicate through olfactory communication and though scent, which is a big part of how they communicate and it can be very inconspicuous. They also play a big role in helping a coastal ecosystem though their preying behaviors and what they eat helps regulate the kelp forests that play a bog role in absorbing carbon dioxide. Otters have always been at a huge risk for population decline because they are so very sensitive to their environment and any new factors introduced into their environment. As time goes on there are so many pollutants put into the water that has huge health risks on them as well as human factors that are always present. With over fishing that causes a huge problem to their food resources as well.Their fur also created a huge problem for their population decline and trying to get those numbers back up has been a challenge. There have been many efforts to help protect the otter species though rescue, rehabilitations and education awareness. There have been many organizations that help create awareness to what is threatening the otter population. The otter population numbers have been rising due to the efforts of organizations and research teams and hope to only keep rising in the future.

Basic Facts about Sea Otters. (2016, September 19). Retrieved December 09, 2017, from http://www.defenders.org/sea-otter/basic-facts

Bulletin of the IUCN/SSC Otter Specialist Group. (n.d.). Retrieved December 09, 2017, from http://otterspecialistgroup.org/

Homepagemacphotoshop. (n.d.). Retrieved December 9, 2017, from http://www.bing.com/cr?

IG=A07EAD23D3964323ABE8A26601DBE89C&CID=1D70FF6C62DF68210974F438637069CB&rd=1&h=zQcRDDJDdYtCbxIb3

v3T0AwiFauzV4CDELSIRh9Nyko&v=1&r=http%3a%2f%2fwww.coastalresearchcenter.ucsb.edu%2f&p=DevEx,5063.1

Kruuk, H. (2012). Otters: ecology, behaviour and conservation. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Media, W. (n.d.). SEAOTTERS.COM – POWERED BY CUTENESS™. Retrieved December 09, 2017, from https://seaotters.com/

Mountain and Sea Adventures | Environmental Education ... (n.d.). Retrieved December 9, 2017, from http://www.bing.com/cr?

IG=6272D873BAC74429B897B27AF74E73C1&CID=3E775069468A67CD0AB85B3D47256648&rd=1&h=ccLDdtaNvfahW8cJxh7

hxTT7RXFyHQ1I0hZFb0ievP8&v=1&r=http%3a%2f%2fmountainandsea.org%2f&p=DevEx,5068.1

Yoxon, P., & Yoxon, G. M. (2014). Otters of the world. Dunbeath, Caithness, Scotland: Whittles Publishing.

Abstract Threats

References

Marine Biology 115By: Laticia Gardner-Sauceda

Sea Otters: Threats and Conservation