Dead Baby Sea Otter (Enhydra Lutris)

Observation by Mike Brubaker: Walking on the beach we came across the baby otter. It was so small we at first though it was a piece of drift wood. This is the first time we have come across a dead baby otter on the Spit. An adult otter was watching from the surf. We wondered if it was the mother.

Comment by LEO Network Editors:

The sea otter (Enhydra lutris) is a marine mammal native to the coast of the northern and eastern North Pacific ocean. The offshore environment is where sea otters inhabit, they dive to the sea floor to forage on marine invertebrates, such as sea urchins, various mollusks and crustaceans.

This observation has been forwarded to the Alaska SeaLife Center as well as to NOAA and the Kasitsna Bay Marine Lab.

The Alaska Sea Life Center is part of the the Alaska Stranding Network. This is a network of organizations that help support rescue, stranding, and rehabilitation efforts statewide. Dead or dying sea otters and other marine mammals should be reported to the Alaska SeaLife Center’s Marine Mammal Stranding Network hotline at 888-774-SEAL (7325).