Title :

Sea Otter

Category: North American Mammals

Facts about Sea Otter, "Scientific name for Sea Otter is Enhydra lutris". "Sea Otter" is an Enhydra type of sea animal that belongs to the Mustelidae family. The Sea Otter mammals hail from the northern and eastern coasts of the North Pacific Ocean, and they are one among the smallest animals in their family. Unlike most sea animals, the Sea Otters do not contain a coating of blubber to assist them keep warm. The primary form of protection of the Sea Otter is a remarkably thick cover of fur, which is the thickest in the Sea Otter realm. Even though the Sea Otter can march on land, mostly it lives in the ocean. The Sea Otter is a keystone animal, meaning that their function in their atmosphere has a superior effect than other varieties. As a predator, the Sea Otter is important to maintaining the equilibrium of the near-coast kelp ecosystems. Furthermore, they indirectly assist to decrease the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, a common greenhouse gas, like kelp woodlands play a significant role in arresting carbon in coastline ecosystems.

Features of Sea Otter

The Sea Otter is a small sea animal, but they are the heaviest variety in their family. Usually, male Sea Otters are heavier and slightly bigger than the females, with the body length, ranging from 3 feet 9 inches to 4 feet 9 inches (1.2 meters to 1.5 meters), with a body mass between 48.5 to 99.2 pounds (22 kg and 45 kg). The female otters will have a body length, ranging from 3 feet 2 inches to 4 feet 6 inches (1.0 meters to 1.4 meters), with a body mass between 30.8 to 72.7 pounds (14 kg and 33 kg). The penis bone of the male Sea Otter is extremely large, huge and bent upwards, with a length of 150 mm, and a breadth of 15 mm at the bottom.

The fur of the Sea Otter contains a maximum of 150,000 hair strands for each square centimeter, which is the thicket fur of any mammal. The fur of the Sea Otter is made up of long, water-resistant protective hairs and small under-fur. The protector hairs keep the thick under-fur layer dehydrated. Cold water is therefore kept totally away from the skin of the Sea Otter and the loss of heat is restricted. The fur remains thick throughout the year, when it is shed; again, it is replaced slowly rather than in a different mating season.

As the skill of the protector hairs to keep the water away counts on maximum cleanliness, the Sea Otter has the skill to attain and groom the fur on any component of its body, making the most of its loose skin and a strangely flexible skeleton. Usually, the color of the pelage is deep brown with silver-gray color speckles, but it can vary from yellowish or grayish tan to approximately black. In adult Sea Otters, the throat, head and chest are paler in color than the remaining parts of their body.

Diet of Sea Otter

Mostly Sea Otters feed on urchins, mussels, abalone, crabs, clams, snails and about 40 other sea species. The Sea Otter feed on roughly 25% of their body weight in food every day to support their lofty metabolism. Sea Otters will bring up a small rock for the sea floor and place it on its chest and crack shells against it.

Reproduction of Sea Otter

Usually, the Sea Otter is Polygamous, which means that male breeds have numerous female partners. Mating will take place throughout the year, with the gestation period of six to eight months. Generally, the litter size is one pup, but the female can offer birth to twins, too. When threatened a female Sea Otter will tuck her pup under a foreleg and dive for safety.

The average lifespan of the male Sea Otter ranges from 10 years to 15 years, whereas the female ones live longer than males, with an average lifespan between 15 years and 20 years.