Defenders' Experts
Historical Background on Sea Otters
Historically, sea otters were found from the Japanese Archipelago north to the Kuril Islands, the Kamchatka Peninsula and the Commander Islands of Russia. Sea otters were also found on the islands of the Aleutian chain east to the Alaska Peninsula and then south along the coast of North America to Baja California in Mexico.
Before sea otters were hunted to near extinction, there were an estimated 300,000 to over one million sea otters scattered throughout this historical range. As of 2008, the worldwide range is estimated to be between 82,350 and 95,000. Although their numbers are nowhere near their historical populations, sea otters occupy most of their historical range from the Kuril Islands northeast to Prince William Sound, Alaska.
Additionally, on the Pacific coast, transplanted populations live in southeastern Alaska and in some parts of British Columbia, Canada, Washington state, and on San Nicolas Island, one of the Channel Islands off the coast of Santa Barbara, California.
Sea otter populations in the United States are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and, for California, southern sea otters have been listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) since 1977. In 2005, the southwest stock of northern sea otters in Alaska, were listed as “threatened” under the ESA. Washington state sea otters are listed as “state endangered”. Sea otters in British Columbia are classified as Threatened by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada.
|
|
