Swipe left to discover some everyday and larger-scale actions that are important in helping to protect sea otter habitat. *Please note this is not a complete list and shows a few of the many actions we can take! Can you think of any more?

Although there are many threats to sea otters health and well-being, they are extremely resilient creatures who have faced and continue to face a lot. Their ability to adapt, survive, and rebound despite these challenges is a testament to their remarkable strength as a species.

5 Things You May Not Know About Sea Otters, Health Edition -Sea otters can get land-based parasites -Shellfish can directly transfer parasites to otters

Sea otters have the densest fur of any species in the animal kingdom. They have to spend many hours each day grooming it to keep it clean. If it isn’t well maintained or gets dirty, however, it loses its ability to trap air and cause hypothermia.

Researchers have identified many different types of sea otter vocalizations, with the mother–pup calls standing out as some of the most unique and recognizable. These special calls not only help them locate each other and serve as warnings but also strengthen the emotional bond between mother-pup.

Sea Otter Awareness Week Challenge Day 7: Post a photo, reel, or story of yourself anchored in something (hugging a blanket, holding hands, wrapped in a scarf, on a floaty, etc.). Share what gives you hope for the ocean’s future based on your answer to day one’s challenge question.

Sea Otter Awareness Week Challenge Day 6: Sea otters are tool masters - they use tools like rocks to crack open their food. Now it’s your turn, “invent” your own quirky way to open food using a random object! 🦦🪨🦀

Sea Otter Awareness Week Challenge Day 5 (little late!): Test your otter knowledge by taking this timeline challenge!

Sea Otter Awareness Week Challenge Day 4: Sea otters depend on a healthy ocean — and every kind act helps to protect it. This Sea Otter Awareness Week, let’s show them some love by doing some otterly kind acts for the place they call home. ♻️

Day 3 Challenge: Get creative! Today, we challenge you to draw, paint, or craft anything inspired by sea otters. Whether it’s realistic or abstract, we want to see your unique style shine! Post it with a brief educational caption and don’t forget to tag us so we can see your amazing work! 🦦🎨

Day 2 Challenge: In the comments below, guess the story being told with emojis. 👇🏼Then leave your own otter story for us to guess! 🦦

Happy kickoff to Sea Otter Awareness Week! This year’s theme is Anchored in Hope. An anchor symbolizes stability, safety, and resilience, while hope is the steady light of optimism that carries us forward. Together, they keep us grounded, guiding us through uncertainty.

Sea Otter Awareness Week runs from Sept. 21st to 27th — but the celebrations kick off today and continue through September 28th! The schedule below is provided by Defenders of Wildlife. For event details, tickets and links, visit their website: defenders.org/sea-otter-aw....

Last week we talked about how sea otters have diet preferences that are shaped by gender, location, resource availability and learned behaviors - and these diet preferences can often be determined by examining their teeth for wear, microscopic markings, chemical signatures and long-term growth.

Did you know that sea otters often have diet preferences that are shaped by gender, location, resource availability and learned behaviors?

Did you know that sea otters are one of few animals that show a handedness (or paw) preference? A 2020 study in the journal Animal Behavior shows that 70% of sea otters prefer using their right paw when it comes to foraging and using tools. Pretty cool huh?

Happy Thursday! Here are some otterly amazing facts all about diving 🦦 Like this post if you learned something new today!

Bioaccumulation is the process by which harmful substances build up in an organism’s body over time, often through the prey that it consumes. As top predators, sea otters are good bioindicators of the health of their ecosystem based on the type and amount of toxins that their body has accumulated.

Happy Monday! Did you know that there is a third subspecies of sea otters called the Russian sea otter? We wanted to take some time to help you get to know them a bit as well - so swipe left to see if you can spot the very subtle differences between them and the northern and southern subspecies. 🦦

The Marine Mammal Commission was established in 1972 under the Marine Mammal Protection Act in response to the growing concern of the significant decline of marine mammal populations. It serves to provide oversight of the conservation policies and programs being carried out by federal agencies.

Swimmable California Day’s purpose is to celebrate and raise awareness of our right as Californian’s to clean and accessible waters. We encourage you to get out and enjoy our beautiful waters- swim, surf, kayak- you have so many options! Shoutout to @3fishstudios on Instagram for the artwork!

Swimmable CA Day is this Friday! Don’t forget to get out and enjoy our beautiful waters 🌊🐟🦦

Ever wonder how you can monitor sea otters alongside the organizations that are committed to doing this every day? We have put together a list of just a few amazing examples so you can learn more about their programs, get otter updates and even get an inside look at some live cams!

Happy Wednesday! We wanted to take some time to get to know our northern sea otter friends better- swipe left to learn a bit more about how similar, yet different they are from southern sea otters. 🦦 #theotterproject

Happy World Otter Day! Head on over to our Instagram page @theotterproject to see how you can join in on our annual spring photo contest! 🦦📷

Sea otters are such an important species on the California coast and deserve all the love and attention they can get today- we hope you are able to take some extra time to visit defenders.org/wildlife/sea... to read all about them and learn about some steps you can take to help protect them!

Challenge for the week! Do some research and try to learn something new about otters every day this week- read a book, listen to a podcast, watch a documentary, etc! There’s so many different ways to learn and sea otters deserve all the love and attention!

As a thank you for your support and following along with us, we wanted to share our top priorities for this year/what we are working on! To read the full newsletter, visit theotterproject.org/blog/the-ott...

Happy Earth Day! It’s a special day to remember just how precious, diverse and beautiful our planet is. As small as you may feel, your actions DO make a difference and are crucial to its well-being.

Welcome to part 3 of our mini series, Otters vs Urchins! For this last part, we are focused on how sea otters affect the sea urchin population. Visit us on instagram @ theotterproject to read the full post and learn why sea otter population growth and recovery is so important for this. 🦦

Welcome to week 2 of our mini series, Otters vs Urchins! This week, we are focused on sea urchins’ impact on otters and their ecosystem, particularly kelp forests.

Welcome to our new mini series, Otters vs Urchins! The main focus of this series will be how otters and urchins have a direct effect on each other in their ecosystem, but this week we are focused primarily on learning the basics of Pacific purple sea urchins!

🌊 Did you know? #Oregon is the only US state along the Pacific Coast that doesn't have a population of sea otters in its historical native range. 💬 It's time to ask: what would Oregon’s coast look like with #seaotters back? 📸: @pschanel.bsky.social , Ecola Point - OR | #seaotter #otters #ocean

Please enjoy this Venn diagram showing some of the key differences and similarities of northern vs southern sea otters! #theotterproject

Clean water is a fundamental right. We are proud to join more than 120 organizations who support the Right to Clean Water Act to #ProtectCAWater and safeguard the health of our waterways, communities, and wildlife.

Today we get to celebrate water, which is an essential part of life for all species! It is a resource to be sustainably protected and conserved, and serves as a crucial link between humans and the environment around us. #worldwaterday2025

Sea otters may be known for their fluffy fur and playful nature, but have you ever noticed their eyes 👀? These marine mammals have incredible vision, specially adapted for life in both air and water. 📸: Wendy Ranney | #seaotters #seaotter #wildlife #marinemammals #oceanconservation

Did you know Elkhorn Slough in the Monterey Bay is the only estuary that is significantly populated by southern sea otters? Providing a safe space for pups, shelter and plenty of food, you can see why otters love to call this area home. Have you had the opportunity to visit this beautiful estuary?

Happy Monday! There’s lots of fun days to celebrate in the upcoming weeks and months, so be on the lookout for fun content and challenges from us as they get closer! Which one are YOU most excited about? 🦦

Welcome to part 4 of our series, Sea Otters as Endangered Species- where we are focusing this week on the ESA, MMPA and conservation and recovery programs within the U.S. Swipe left to read through the (many) slides, as this topic is critical for the livelihood of our beloved sea otters!

Welcome to part 3 of our series, Sea Otters as Endangered Species where we are taking a look at the southern sea otter population. This specific population has greatly decreased in size and range, slides 3 & 4 showing just how significant that change has been.

Welcome to part 2 of our series- Sea Otters as Endangered Species. Give the photos below a read to learn some info about the worldwide sea otter population, which helps us understand why sea otters need to be recognized as endangered on IUCN’s Red List.

Welcome to part 1 of our new series- Sea Otters as Endangered Species. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global extinction risk status of animal, fungi and plant species.