First of all, there is a lack of corpse of dead sea otter on the beaches of Alaska , which is certainly cant be expected by the environmental pollution killing them off . However, seldom presence of dead otters supports the hypothesis of
predation
28. What sets the North American River Otter’s vision apart from the many land animals?…
"In each case the foreign powers were victorious and gained commercial privileges and legal and territorial concessions in China."(Pletcher 1). In the beginning of the book while Otter is still in China, they have multiple encounters with opium addicts and sometimes made disgruntled comments about the British for causing this. The first opium war broke out when China confiscated opium in an effort to limit and ultimately remove all opium from the country; things escalated in the days following when British sailors killed a chinese villager. This by itself wasn't too important as it was a random sailor and not a representation of the British government, but soon after the British government refused to extradite the accused. Several other events…
If the drop in sea turtle population is caused by human interference, then areas with lower human interference will have more successful sea turtle nesting.…
After a long day of swimming the otter would roll on the ground or rub on a log to dry themselves. The Oriental Small Clawed Otter can last up to 6-8 minutes under water, so hunting for food is easy. Their forefeet are helpful because they use them to capture their food and “Their hind feet says wildlife explorer states, “Are used for swimming.” “Their eyes stay shut for 40 days after birth,” states the wildlife explorer. According to the wildlife explorer, “Their number of young is 1-6 but usually 1-2.” One of the most interesting facts is that if several otters are swimming in one straight line with their backs out of the water their backs can be mistaken for the humps of a sea monster. Its genus and species is “Aonyx Cinera” that is also the species for the African Otter. Although they are the same species the African otter is much bigger, and weighs up to 75lb and just like the Oriental Small Clawed Otter and the Asian Otter they all have white markings on their faces, chests and throat. The Oriental Small Clawed Otter is one otter that loves to swim and definitely loves to snack on…
If the population of sea otters decreases, then the kelp forest will be in terrible danger.…
It’s interesting reading so if you’re up for a quick study, see my references below. (Southeast Alaska Indian art linked to adorable pictures of otters above and below, as seen on EsoterX website.)…
Use this document to help you design your experiment about one of the scenarios from the activity. Copy and paste the template then insert your information for each of the steps of the scientific method.…
It has a period of foraging and eating in the morning , starting about an hour before sunrise , then rests or sleeps in mid-day . They spend much of their time grooming , which consists of cleaning the fur , untangling knots , removing loose fur , rubbing the fur to squeeze out water and introduce air , and blowing air into the fur . They hunt in short dives , often to the sea floor . The kelp forest is a forest , but it is not a forest of trees . it is made of seaweed called giant kelp . Kelp grows in cool coastal waters where sunlight can go down to a rocky sea floor . kelp needs sunlight in order to grow .Sea otters protect the kelp forests from being eating by sea urchins . They play a vital role of protecting the kelp forests . It catches fish with its forepaws . They keep kelp forests healthy by eating animals that graze on kelp . They can get eaten by killer whales and sea lions . The great white shark is believed to be their primary predator, and dead sea otters have been found with injuries from shark bites, although there is no evidence that sharks actually eat them . Toxoplasma gondii parasites to the ocean and kill sea otters.Sea otters can do well in captivity, and are featured in over 40 public aquariums and zoos. Like the Seattle Aquarium , and Vancouver…
Some external physical traits between the sea otter, sea mink, and wolverine are short legs and dark, dense, oily fur. The density and oil of the fur helps the animals during the winter, they are easily able to stay warm in the winter or while swimming in the sea otters and minks case and they make them resistant to getting frost on their bodies. These animals also share the fact that they have short tails, small eyes, short ears, placental births, mammary glands, and sweat glands.All these. unshared traits help each species/ organism better prepare and be ready for competition and help the species separately adapt to their ecosystem/ environment at their own…
First, the lecturer mentions that there is no dead sea otter body on the beach, that means the sea otter gets killed and eaten by a predator, not because of pollution , ON the other hand, the reading points out that the main reason is pollution, also, some experts test the water and find a high levels of chemicals that affect the sea otter.…
(1985) examined mortality patterns of manatees in Florida. To better understand these mortality patterns in Florida, four areas along the coastline were analyzed. A carcass salvage program was initiated in 1974 to document causes of death in manatees in Florida (O’Shea et al. 1985). Carcasses were recorded from these different areas and the cause of death was determined. Two categories of mortality showing greatest increases were boat collisions and death of dependent calves (Garrett et al. 1994). Winter plays a major role in the survival of manatees that live in Florida. The years 1977 and 1981 showed the highest rate of manatee mortality that have occurred in the winter months in Florida (O’Shea et al.…
The Enhydra lutris or sea otter are local to the coasts of the North Pacific Ocean, ranging from Canada to Southern California and even Mexico. This species ranks as the second smallest marine mammal in the animal kingdom and is known for its dense fur coat, as opposed to a layer of blubber (http://www.defenders.org/sea-otter/basic-facts). The sea otter is a keystone species. A keystone species is “a species on which other species in an ecosystem largely depend, such that if it were removed the ecosystem would change drastically” (https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&es_th=1&ie=UTF-8#safe=strict&q=keystone+species+definition). Their predation helps to protect the kelp forests of the shores in which they live. The…
We measure how much energy it takes an otter to do something by measuring the oxygen consumption during surface behaviors, and the oxygen consumption after an otter returns from a dive. This is done using a small plastic dome put around the animal, and it measures the amount of oxygen which is then divided by the time the activity takes to make the Oxygen Consumption Rate. This has been used to show that sea otters have resting metabolic rates that range from 2.8 to 3.2 times that of a similar sized terrestrial mammal (Iverson, 1972; Morrison et al., 1974; Costa, 1978; Costa and Kooyman, 1982). Even though we expect marine mammals to have a high metabolic rate, this represents an extreme.…
Earle utilizes her chapter on fish to call the world out on the elephant in the room-overfishing. Earle discusses how at one time in history, people believed that there was an infinite amount of fish to be caught, that there would never be a day when we would see something as popular as tuna, go extinct. We are sitting on the eve of “that day.” Earle really brings out the reality of overfishing, almost mocking our early ideas of sustainable yield. “..but those pesky animals didn’t obey the rules.. So what’s wrong with the concept of sustainable yield?” (Earle) Earle makes keen note that you cannot possibly create a concept of sustainability, when you know next to nothing about the species you are supposedly “yielding”. Earle debunks the idea of a surplus in the ocean of a healthy ecosystem, stating “What APPEARS to be an overabundance to human observers is a natural insurance policy...” (Earle) Earle applies the same idea of questionable yield to marine mammals. She spends a fair amount of this chapter on the touchy subject that is almost always controversial-whaling. She lends a nod…
The trap triggers were placed just under the surface of the water; the stationary side was stacked up against the bank, and concealed with grass. Baily traps were set completely under the water. Many traps were set on trails with sign of frequent otter activity, these sites did relatively well. Spill ways from beaver dams proved among the most productive locations. Sets at the tops of slides were much more successful than those placed at the bottom. Leg-hold traps were used after the study was well underway, they were smaller and easier to transport, they also caused less serious injuries to otter’s teeth.…