Its ears and nostrils are closed down in water. Sea otters in the United States received additional protections with the passage of the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act in the 1970s. Most sea otters hunt and eat by themselves but then stay together in this group or raft when resting. Otters have a nasty bite! Otters like to stick together, so when they sleep they will wrap themselves in seaweed and float together in a group. They are known to eat clams, mussels, crabs, octopus, sea urchins, snails, and fat innkeeper worms. 7 FUN FACTS ABOUT OTTERS! Cute! Fun Facts for Kids. When otters dive, they are able to seal their nose and ears. Without this, they rely on their two fur layers to keep them warm. Sea otters eat 25 percent of their body weight in food every day. 10. Hunted nearly to extinction by the fur trade, sea otters are endangered and currently exist in only a portion of their historic range. 5. Sea otters are just as full of interesting characteristics as they are full of cuteness! Otters have to eat vast amounts of food every day, which takes up a significant portion of their time. Sea otters are equally active both night and day. We wouldn't go drifting away on one of these rafts, however! Approximately 90% of the world’s sea otter population lives in coastal Alaska. Fish and Wildlife Service. The sea otter spends most of its time in the water but, in some locations, comes ashore to sleep or rest. 2. The otter is a carnivorous mammal in a branch of the weasel family called Lutrinae. In summer, when sea otters spend almost all their time in the sea, the way they sleep on the water looks very touching. Approximately 90% of the world’s sea otter population lives in coastal Alaska. Following are a few other interesting facts you might not know about sea otters: 1) Sea otters are of the smallest marine mammals that are native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. North American Sea Otters are larger than Asian otters. OTTER FACTS FOR KIDS! It has short tail and webbed-feet with retractable front claws. Other Fun Facts. Read on and enjoy our interesting information about otters. Upon returning to the surface, they float on their backs, with the rock on the stomachs. Sea otters have the densest fur of all mammals with up to 1 million hairs per square inch. I recently found out that sea otters fall asleep holding paws and my heart has never been so full. Do you have any fun or interesting facts about otters that we’ve missed? Sea otters eat sea urchins & other invertebrates that graze on giant kelp. Their frequent appearance also means more … The fur is responsible for insulating them and keeping them warm because they do not have a layer of blubber to keep them warm and protect them from the outside environment. However, sea otters are typically marine mammals. They live in offshore forests of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera), and spend most of their active time foraging below the canopy. Otters consume mainly fish but many people think that they eat plants and berries. When they find a really good rock, they will keep it around by storing it in little bags under their arm. Male Otters are called boars, females are sows, and the offspring are pups. That’s because, unlike its fellow marine mammals, … Sea otters are good at floating on the water’s surface, as air trapped in their fur makes them more buoyant. Usually, a single baby (called a pup) is produced following 4 to 5 months of pregnancy. The sea otter's dark brown fur is the finest and densest of any animal fur. The males of this subspecies weigh around 65 pounds while females are 45 pounds in weight. Sea otters will eat virtually anything they can get their little paws on. Their bodies are insulated by a thick fur coat and not by blubber as in other marine mammals. 1. Sea otters mainly live in river basins. Sea Otter Facts For Kids. Photo source: http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals. According to a study by the U.S. Geological Survey, sea otters living in a remote area in Washington state were carriers of the H1N1 virus. Its fur is the densest of any animal on Earth—an estimated 1 million hairs per square inch. The northern sea otters can weigh as much as 100 pounds. One reason for this is their lack of a blubber layer. Sea otters generally forage close to shore in depths shallower than 18 meters (60 feet) but are capable of diving to depths of 90 meters (300 feet) or more. Sea otters can reach speeds of 1.5 km/h (0.9 mph) on the surface and 9 km/h (5.6 mph) while diving. Their fur is brown with shades of lighter tan and yellow on the heads … All Rights Reserved. At birth, the weight of a pup is 3 to 5 pounds. Generally, the male sea otters grows from 3.11 to 4.11 feet in length and weighs around 49 to 99 pounds. Sea otters can stay underwater for 5 minutes, and river otters can hold their breath for even longer - 8 minutes! We all know that sea otters are pretty darn adorable, but here are a few fun things you may not know about them: Sea otters sleep on their backs while floating in the water. This may seem a little gross, but not when you learn they are meticulously clean. Sea otters are unique in the otter family as the only species to give birth in the water. National Geographic: Sea Otter 2. A raft may have only ten sea otters but may also be a group of up to a thousand! No sea otters, no kelp forests. Fun Facts About Sea Otters. Almost all otters have webbed feet, some more webbed than others, and they can close off their ears and nose as they swim underwater. Here are 5 fun & easy to remember facts about sea otters. Learning Colors! A newborn pup needs constant attention and will stay with its mother for six months until it develops survival skills. Currently, sea otters can be found in approximately two-thirds of their historic range, although they remain an endangered species. Description. By. They prey on crustaceans by using pairs of rocks to crush the outer shells, easily accessing the soft flesh inside. Rahimah Rashith - 26 Oct 2015, 11:48 am. The sea otter can live its entire life without leaving the water. A sea otter relies on its fur to keep warm because it doesn't have an insulating layer of blubber as other marine mammals do. Weighing between 30 and 100 pounds, the height is slightly more than 8 been! Stay together in this group or raft when resting out our range of fun facts. 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