Save the World: Save the sea otters During the 18th and 19th centuries, sea otters were hunted for their luxurious pelts, and by the early 1900s, the species was believed to be extinct in California. (Carswell) Why do we care you ask, well not only are they super cute and eat with their hands. Apparently, a healthy population of sea otters keeps the sea urchin population in check. An unhealthy or small population of sea otters allows the sea urchin’s number to explode thus decimating kelp beds, which is the sea urchin’s food source, and causing a “chain reaction that depletes the food supply for other marine animals consequently causing their decline. (Kuipers) Luckily, as the years grew Californians started to find sea otters roaming out in the water again. Slowly but surely the population was growing in these recovering areas, but the southern sea otters (Enhydra lutris nereis), also known as California sea otters, were listed as threatened in 1977 under the Endangered Species Act. (Carswell) There are a number of reasons for why sea otters have come close to extinction. For years poachers have hunted these animals and slaughtered them in order to obtain there amazing water resistant coats. By the 1900’s there was a treaty signed to protect all of the sea otters, and even after Japan withdrew from the treaty Canada and the United States still kept it in effect. Even after the poaching stopped the pollution continued. Sea otters find themselves submerged in the giant oil spills that the tankers cause. When oil gets into their fur is causes it to no longer be water resistant, therefore most sea otters die because they freeze to death. If they are in the warmer parts of the world, like California then the oil causes death from its toxins when the otters are trying to clean themselves. Oil spills and the garbage in the water are causing tons of marine deaths each year. How do we start saving the sea otters? Well I think that we should start by strictly regulating the oil tankers, maybe have fish and game on the boats with them at all times to stop some of the crashes or leaks. We need to also figure out a way to stop people from littering into our waterways. I was thinking maybe close off the passages along the street so adults and children don’t even have the opportunity to litter in these waterways.
Narwhals are not endangered, but they are nearly threatened. During the spring, summer, and fall Narwhals are hunted the most. Narwhals are also considered as the animal most threatened by climate change (Felsinger, 2008). With Narwhals being sea creatures, it would give them greater risks for becoming endangered and threatened. Narwhals are also threatened by the industries on the waters, like the oil, gas productions, and commercial fishing. By means of hunters, weather changes, other sea creatures, and even being close to populated areas, Narwhals face greater chances of being harmed or killed.
California condor, the largest flying bird in North America area, is now defined as endangered species. The term endangered species refer to species threatened with extinction by changes in its environment. The condor as scavengers, no matter how dangerous they may sound, are the essential member of our ecosystem (Verner, 1978).
Unfortunately, besides the animal being such a stately and scientifically contributing creature, it has been endangered by various factors.
Your viewpoint on killer whales is forever changed. These are the kinds of situations that should and could be prevented. According to Sally Kestin of the Sun-Sentinel, mammals actually live longer in the wild than in aquariums. There is a problem with keeping marine mammals in captivity because of Tilikum’s attack on trainers, other various attacks, how the orca industry started and the psychological effects of captivity. The problem could be solved by using sea pens and making more laws protecting marine mammals.
Manatees are loved by many Floridians. Manatees are known as one of the state’s natural wonders. They were once marked as one of the endangered mammals in Florida. The federal government considers a species endangered when it is at risk of extinction. Therefore, the federal government is downlisting manatees from “endangered” to “threatened.”
marine, either threatened or endangered. Under these terms species could no. longer be hunted, collected, injured or killed. The northern spotted owl falls under the more serious condition of being endangered. Also, the bill forbids federal agencies to fund or carry out any activity that would threaten the species or its habitat. It is the latter part of the bill that causes the controversy.
In the year of 1981, manatees were listed as an endangered species under the Wildlife Protection Act that was assisted by the Belize Audubon Society. Because of this, Belize has been protecting the manatee for many years. There are also many projects that the people of Belize are forming and have formed to help the conservation of this marine mammal through research, training, and education throughout the country.
Why can’t we shoot/trap the American River Otter? It is a animal with a very expensive fur. Their fur is the most dense fur on earth, for example, they have about one million hairs per square inch on their fur, which is because they have no blubber to keep themselves warm. Some cool facts about the otter are, that they can live their whole lives without getting out of the water. In other words, it does not get tired of swimming. Some reasons why we want to get rid of them are; the otter has been eating all the fish we like to catch. Some examples are, Crayfish, Salmon, and Trout. Another reason is the Otter has been eating all the water fowl. Some cool waterfowl are, Geese, Ducks, and their eggs. Reason
What is the first marine mammal added to the endangered species list attributed primarily to climate change? As climate change melts the ice, it is projected that two thirds of polar bears will disappear by 2050. This drastic decline in the polar bear is occurring in our lifetime, which is but a miniscule fraction of the time polar bears have explored the vast Arctic seas (National Wildlife Federation, 2014).
Lontra candensis, river otters, use their pheromones in a behavior commonly referred to as scent marking. River otters are semi-aquatic, carnivorous mammals that live mainly in inland waterways, ponds, and lakes. They are most well-known for their playful antics, and they can be observed playing in their natural habitats throughout North America.1 Scent marking is a behavior that has been observed in several different animal species, particularly mammals, but for otters it is very strange. Otters are semi-aquatic, and aquatic animals usually do not partake in this behavior. There are many different hypotheses as to why otters demonstrate this behavior.
The cuteness of otters is worldwide accepted. These creatures are fuzzy, social, and incredibly intelligent. Male otters are called boars, females are sows, and the babies are called pups. This essay contains a brief synopsis of the types of otters, the anatomy of an otter, the threats they face, its social nature, motherly instinct, how it eats, and its daily life.
What little we do know, however, is that patterns of declining marine mammal populations, such as populations of pinnipeds and sea otters, have emerged in nature right after the deterioration of whaling in the North Pacific. It is theorized that a shift in diet and food webs is the major factor to the patterns of declining marine populations since food webs and predatory to prey interactions are critical for abundance and healthy population (Estes 2, 67).
1. If the southern sea otter became extinct primarily because of human activities, it would be unethical and people could no longer be able to look at these appealing and highly intelligent animals as they play in the water resulting in the loss of millions of dollars a year in tourism revenues. Also, sea urchins and other kelp eating species would probably destroy the Pacific coast kelp forests and much of the rich biodiversity they support. I would do the following three things to help prevent the extinction of this species. First, I would become a member or donate money to an organization that works to protect sea urchins. Second, I would to tell the government to issue a statement to prevent the hunting of this species. Third, I would have
Believe it or not, many species of whales are endangered. According to “WWF.org,” “Unfortunately their large size and mythical aura does not protect them; six out of the 13 great whale species are classified as endangered, even after decades of protection.” Many other endangered species, like the Giant Panda, Gray wolf, sea turtle, and the Bengal Tiger have strict laws on hunting them. If someone is caught killing one of those
In our world today we have approximately 26,021 endangered species. Endangered species are organisms that may possible become extinct. The term 'endangered species' refers to all species that fits this description. However some conservation biologists and scientists normally use the term ‘endangered species’ to refer to species that are put on the IUCN(International Union for Conservation of Nature)Red List. Many factors can be looked at when considering the conservation status of a species. Factors such as human threats or environmental threats can cause a species to become endangered.