@seaottersavvy.bsky.social
Sea Otter Savvy is a nonprofit research & outreach organization promoting sea otter stewardship. 2 sea otter biologists on duty. (She/her) Respect the nap.
New research (Grewelle et al.) reveals a surprising threat to southern sea otters: their prey. Young otters eating Pacific mole crabs can ingest parasitic worms that cause the deadly disease acanthocephalan peritonitis (AP).
November 14, 2025 at 7:31 PM
New research (Grewelle et al.) reveals a surprising threat to southern sea otters: their prey. Young otters eating Pacific mole crabs can ingest parasitic worms that cause the deadly disease acanthocephalan peritonitis (AP).
Sea otters in Morro Bay are more than just a pretty face—they’re indicators of estuary health.
Since 2019, Cal Poly students have tracked sea otter foraging here, and a new grad student is diving into the data to explore sea otter ecology as this population expands in the estuary. Stay tuned!
Since 2019, Cal Poly students have tracked sea otter foraging here, and a new grad student is diving into the data to explore sea otter ecology as this population expands in the estuary. Stay tuned!
November 5, 2025 at 9:23 PM
Sea otters in Morro Bay are more than just a pretty face—they’re indicators of estuary health.
Since 2019, Cal Poly students have tracked sea otter foraging here, and a new grad student is diving into the data to explore sea otter ecology as this population expands in the estuary. Stay tuned!
Since 2019, Cal Poly students have tracked sea otter foraging here, and a new grad student is diving into the data to explore sea otter ecology as this population expands in the estuary. Stay tuned!
Reposted
Start your Monday with stories from Alonso Daboub, Max Chun, Jana Marcus, Wallace Baine, Hillary Ojeda and more, plus Community Voices opinion.
Morning Lookout: Otters and human contact; pedestrian/bike path plan amid Murray Street Bridge construction; Cabrillo's magical 'Metamorphoses'
Santa Cruz County news and opinion headlines from Lookout for the morning of Monday, Nov. 3.
buff.ly
November 3, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Start your Monday with stories from Alonso Daboub, Max Chun, Jana Marcus, Wallace Baine, Hillary Ojeda and more, plus Community Voices opinion.
On October 19, 2025, a sea otter mother and her tiny pup were struck by a boat in Monterey Harbor.
They were crowded and harassed at their haul out spot. A few days later, the pup was found dead.
Read the blog from our Director: www.seaottersavvy.org/one-pup
They were crowded and harassed at their haul out spot. A few days later, the pup was found dead.
Read the blog from our Director: www.seaottersavvy.org/one-pup
One Pup: The Tragic End for an Urban Sea Otter
One Pup: The Tragic End for an Urban Sea Otter By Gena Bentall, Director and Senior Scientist, Sea Otter Savvy Sea otter foraging near boat traffic in a central California coast harbor. Photo by Gena ...
www.seaottersavvy.org
October 31, 2025 at 12:39 AM
On October 19, 2025, a sea otter mother and her tiny pup were struck by a boat in Monterey Harbor.
They were crowded and harassed at their haul out spot. A few days later, the pup was found dead.
Read the blog from our Director: www.seaottersavvy.org/one-pup
They were crowded and harassed at their haul out spot. A few days later, the pup was found dead.
Read the blog from our Director: www.seaottersavvy.org/one-pup
Listen to the new FurReal podcast featuring Sea Otter Savvy today: open.spotify.com/episode/5msb...
Spotify – Web Player
open.spotify.com
October 28, 2025 at 4:22 PM
Listen to the new FurReal podcast featuring Sea Otter Savvy today: open.spotify.com/episode/5msb...
Pup size matters! Compared to their mustelid relatives, sea otters have evolved to have fewer—but larger—pups. This evolutionary trade-off may reflect the challenges of raising young entirely at sea, where a bigger body offers warmth, buoyancy, and a better chance of survival. 🧵👇
October 18, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Pup size matters! Compared to their mustelid relatives, sea otters have evolved to have fewer—but larger—pups. This evolutionary trade-off may reflect the challenges of raising young entirely at sea, where a bigger body offers warmth, buoyancy, and a better chance of survival. 🧵👇
These kind of incidents are an inevitable product of our relentless encroachment on the sea otters’ home, a process that initiated nearly 300 years ago at the start of the maritime fur trade. @scsentinel.bsky.social
www.santacruzsentinel.com/2025/10/17/p...
www.santacruzsentinel.com/2025/10/17/p...
Puckish sea otters continue board-stealing ways at Steamer Lane
“The more prolonged the exposure of sea otters and their offspring are to human activities, the higher the likelihood that this is going to occur more frequently,” one expert told the S…
www.santacruzsentinel.com
October 18, 2025 at 4:30 PM
These kind of incidents are an inevitable product of our relentless encroachment on the sea otters’ home, a process that initiated nearly 300 years ago at the start of the maritime fur trade. @scsentinel.bsky.social
www.santacruzsentinel.com/2025/10/17/p...
www.santacruzsentinel.com/2025/10/17/p...
Reposted
Our President, Dr. Lance Morgan, joined by First Officer of the Beach and Sea Otter Ambassador Guinness, were excited to attend our friends @seaottersavvy.bsky.social event at Doran Beach last weekend.
We’re looking forward to more fun at Sea Otter Awareness Week September 21-27, 2025!
We’re looking forward to more fun at Sea Otter Awareness Week September 21-27, 2025!
September 11, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Our President, Dr. Lance Morgan, joined by First Officer of the Beach and Sea Otter Ambassador Guinness, were excited to attend our friends @seaottersavvy.bsky.social event at Doran Beach last weekend.
We’re looking forward to more fun at Sea Otter Awareness Week September 21-27, 2025!
We’re looking forward to more fun at Sea Otter Awareness Week September 21-27, 2025!
⏰ 1 week to go! Join us at Doran Beach, Bodega Bay for Sea Otters Were Here: Coastal Ecology Pop-Up! 🦦🌊
📅 Sat, Sept 6 | 10 AM–2 PM 🧵👇
📅 Sat, Sept 6 | 10 AM–2 PM 🧵👇
August 30, 2025 at 4:43 PM
⏰ 1 week to go! Join us at Doran Beach, Bodega Bay for Sea Otters Were Here: Coastal Ecology Pop-Up! 🦦🌊
📅 Sat, Sept 6 | 10 AM–2 PM 🧵👇
📅 Sat, Sept 6 | 10 AM–2 PM 🧵👇
Join our raft! Sea Otter Savvy is recruiting volunteers for our community science and outreach teams in all of our regions: Monterey Bay Area, San Luis Obispo county, and Northern California (outreach only). Make new friends and participate in community science and stewardship! 🧵👇
#volunteer
#volunteer
August 27, 2025 at 2:10 AM
Join our raft! Sea Otter Savvy is recruiting volunteers for our community science and outreach teams in all of our regions: Monterey Bay Area, San Luis Obispo county, and Northern California (outreach only). Make new friends and participate in community science and stewardship! 🧵👇
#volunteer
#volunteer
📣 Announcement! Our newest certified Community Active Wildlife Steward is A Kayak Shack in Morro Bay! CAWS businesses are certified when they meet our criteria for wildlife stewardship in their business practices.
#StewardshipSaturday
#StewardshipSaturday
July 27, 2025 at 12:37 AM
📣 Announcement! Our newest certified Community Active Wildlife Steward is A Kayak Shack in Morro Bay! CAWS businesses are certified when they meet our criteria for wildlife stewardship in their business practices.
#StewardshipSaturday
#StewardshipSaturday
Jack of all trades or master of one? When sea otters first recolonize an area, they will all eat similar prey — whatever is abundant and calorie rich. But what does a savvy sea otter do when more otter neighbors settle in and favorite prey is harder to find? Diversify!🧵👇
📸Joan Tisdale #tastytuesday
📸Joan Tisdale #tastytuesday
July 22, 2025 at 5:47 PM
Jack of all trades or master of one? When sea otters first recolonize an area, they will all eat similar prey — whatever is abundant and calorie rich. But what does a savvy sea otter do when more otter neighbors settle in and favorite prey is harder to find? Diversify!🧵👇
📸Joan Tisdale #tastytuesday
📸Joan Tisdale #tastytuesday
It’s time for our #SummerSeaOtterSafetySeries!
Level 1: Sea otters are naturally wary of people and avoid interactions; if a sea otter approaches you, that is abnormal behavior. It is your responsibility to avoid and discourage these interactions: steps 🧵👇
#KeepWildlifeWild #SeaOtterSavvy
Level 1: Sea otters are naturally wary of people and avoid interactions; if a sea otter approaches you, that is abnormal behavior. It is your responsibility to avoid and discourage these interactions: steps 🧵👇
#KeepWildlifeWild #SeaOtterSavvy
July 18, 2025 at 7:00 PM
It’s time for our #SummerSeaOtterSafetySeries!
Level 1: Sea otters are naturally wary of people and avoid interactions; if a sea otter approaches you, that is abnormal behavior. It is your responsibility to avoid and discourage these interactions: steps 🧵👇
#KeepWildlifeWild #SeaOtterSavvy
Level 1: Sea otters are naturally wary of people and avoid interactions; if a sea otter approaches you, that is abnormal behavior. It is your responsibility to avoid and discourage these interactions: steps 🧵👇
#KeepWildlifeWild #SeaOtterSavvy
The Sea Otter Savvy team had the pleasure of meeting Senator John Laird at Saturday’s Day on the Beach event in Santa Cruz! We shared our concerns about the weakening of long-standing laws that protect our coasts and the amazing wildlife that depends on them. #wildlifeWednesday 🧵👇
July 16, 2025 at 9:03 PM
The Sea Otter Savvy team had the pleasure of meeting Senator John Laird at Saturday’s Day on the Beach event in Santa Cruz! We shared our concerns about the weakening of long-standing laws that protect our coasts and the amazing wildlife that depends on them. #wildlifeWednesday 🧵👇
Home with your pups and needing a fun sea otter science activity? Sea Otter Savvy can help with that!
Make your own 'Blubber' (crisco) glove and even 'Fur' (wool) glove and test out which one is better for staying warm in cold water: www.seaottersavvy.org/blubber-glov...
Answer below 👇🦦🔬
Make your own 'Blubber' (crisco) glove and even 'Fur' (wool) glove and test out which one is better for staying warm in cold water: www.seaottersavvy.org/blubber-glov...
Answer below 👇🦦🔬
July 10, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Home with your pups and needing a fun sea otter science activity? Sea Otter Savvy can help with that!
Make your own 'Blubber' (crisco) glove and even 'Fur' (wool) glove and test out which one is better for staying warm in cold water: www.seaottersavvy.org/blubber-glov...
Answer below 👇🦦🔬
Make your own 'Blubber' (crisco) glove and even 'Fur' (wool) glove and test out which one is better for staying warm in cold water: www.seaottersavvy.org/blubber-glov...
Answer below 👇🦦🔬
Way to be sea otter savvy!!
July 8, 2025 at 2:58 AM
Way to be sea otter savvy!!
For your #MondayMotivation Take the Sea Otter Savvy Pledge:
www.seaottersavvy.org/pledge and join us in supporting sea otter conservation and community stewardship!
Make you pledge and spread the Savvy! #SeaOtterSavvy
www.seaottersavvy.org/pledge and join us in supporting sea otter conservation and community stewardship!
Make you pledge and spread the Savvy! #SeaOtterSavvy
July 7, 2025 at 8:09 PM
For your #MondayMotivation Take the Sea Otter Savvy Pledge:
www.seaottersavvy.org/pledge and join us in supporting sea otter conservation and community stewardship!
Make you pledge and spread the Savvy! #SeaOtterSavvy
www.seaottersavvy.org/pledge and join us in supporting sea otter conservation and community stewardship!
Make you pledge and spread the Savvy! #SeaOtterSavvy
#Seaotters resting in kelp may wrap themselves in fronds to stay safe and secure while they sleep. Just like kelp offers protection, we can all help sea otters feel safe in their home. By watching from a distance and minimizing disturbance, we support a more peaceful ocean for everyone.
July 5, 2025 at 9:00 PM
#Seaotters resting in kelp may wrap themselves in fronds to stay safe and secure while they sleep. Just like kelp offers protection, we can all help sea otters feel safe in their home. By watching from a distance and minimizing disturbance, we support a more peaceful ocean for everyone.
#July4th marks a time of celebration but also of sadness as we remember the loss of one of the CA coast's most photogenic sea otters. Mr. Enchilada. He was a regular where Moss Landing Rd meets the south harbor. At night, 7/4/2016 he was struck and killed by a car while crossing the road. 🧵👇
July 4, 2025 at 8:20 PM
#July4th marks a time of celebration but also of sadness as we remember the loss of one of the CA coast's most photogenic sea otters. Mr. Enchilada. He was a regular where Moss Landing Rd meets the south harbor. At night, 7/4/2016 he was struck and killed by a car while crossing the road. 🧵👇
In memoriam: Jim Estes explains how sea otters run the world.
Over a decades-long career as a federal scientist, #JimEstes’ groundbreaking work on #seaotters has shown just how much these charismatic animals can teach us about how the world’s ecosystems work. 🧵👇
Over a decades-long career as a federal scientist, #JimEstes’ groundbreaking work on #seaotters has shown just how much these charismatic animals can teach us about how the world’s ecosystems work. 🧵👇
July 2, 2025 at 8:05 PM
In memoriam: Jim Estes explains how sea otters run the world.
Over a decades-long career as a federal scientist, #JimEstes’ groundbreaking work on #seaotters has shown just how much these charismatic animals can teach us about how the world’s ecosystems work. 🧵👇
Over a decades-long career as a federal scientist, #JimEstes’ groundbreaking work on #seaotters has shown just how much these charismatic animals can teach us about how the world’s ecosystems work. 🧵👇
Sea otters and river otters may both be mustelids (weasels) with big appetites, but these cousins live very different lives. Sea otters are marine mammals & their diet is specific to marine invertebrates, while river otters move between aquatic & terrestrial habitats and have a more varied diet.🧵👇
June 27, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Sea otters and river otters may both be mustelids (weasels) with big appetites, but these cousins live very different lives. Sea otters are marine mammals & their diet is specific to marine invertebrates, while river otters move between aquatic & terrestrial habitats and have a more varied diet.🧵👇
🦦+🪱 = One Strange Snack!
Did you know 🦦 have a taste for one of the ocean’s weirdest creatures — the fat innkeeper worm (Urechis caupo)? These squishy, pink worms live buried in mudflats, digging U-shaped burrows for underwater shelters for all kinds of marine life. 🧵👇
#SeaOtterSavvy
📸 N. Laroche
Did you know 🦦 have a taste for one of the ocean’s weirdest creatures — the fat innkeeper worm (Urechis caupo)? These squishy, pink worms live buried in mudflats, digging U-shaped burrows for underwater shelters for all kinds of marine life. 🧵👇
#SeaOtterSavvy
📸 N. Laroche
June 25, 2025 at 6:14 PM
🦦+🪱 = One Strange Snack!
Did you know 🦦 have a taste for one of the ocean’s weirdest creatures — the fat innkeeper worm (Urechis caupo)? These squishy, pink worms live buried in mudflats, digging U-shaped burrows for underwater shelters for all kinds of marine life. 🧵👇
#SeaOtterSavvy
📸 N. Laroche
Did you know 🦦 have a taste for one of the ocean’s weirdest creatures — the fat innkeeper worm (Urechis caupo)? These squishy, pink worms live buried in mudflats, digging U-shaped burrows for underwater shelters for all kinds of marine life. 🧵👇
#SeaOtterSavvy
📸 N. Laroche
Another Monday, and the world feels heavy. In times like these, it’s more important than ever to care for yourself. Take a cue from the 🦦—rest isn't retreat, it's resilience.
Be gentle with yourself. Recharge. Reset. And remember to #RespectTheNap -yours and others’
#SeaOtterSavvy #MondayMood
Be gentle with yourself. Recharge. Reset. And remember to #RespectTheNap -yours and others’
#SeaOtterSavvy #MondayMood
June 23, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Another Monday, and the world feels heavy. In times like these, it’s more important than ever to care for yourself. Take a cue from the 🦦—rest isn't retreat, it's resilience.
Be gentle with yourself. Recharge. Reset. And remember to #RespectTheNap -yours and others’
#SeaOtterSavvy #MondayMood
Be gentle with yourself. Recharge. Reset. And remember to #RespectTheNap -yours and others’
#SeaOtterSavvy #MondayMood
Sea otters and gulls have a relationship that is mostly commensal (one benefits & the other derives neither benefit nor harm). Gulls will follow foraging #seaotters to clean up scrap —and sea otter biologists can use begging gulls as a good marker for a 🦦 when collecting foraging data.#seaottersavvy
June 21, 2025 at 12:19 AM
Sea otters and gulls have a relationship that is mostly commensal (one benefits & the other derives neither benefit nor harm). Gulls will follow foraging #seaotters to clean up scrap —and sea otter biologists can use begging gulls as a good marker for a 🦦 when collecting foraging data.#seaottersavvy
Our Mondays are always made better with sea otter art!
Remy, a 3rd grader at Central Elementary in Helena, MT interviewed our Director about 🦦 and shared her art.
🧵👇
Remy, a 3rd grader at Central Elementary in Helena, MT interviewed our Director about 🦦 and shared her art.
🧵👇
June 16, 2025 at 6:32 PM
Our Mondays are always made better with sea otter art!
Remy, a 3rd grader at Central Elementary in Helena, MT interviewed our Director about 🦦 and shared her art.
🧵👇
Remy, a 3rd grader at Central Elementary in Helena, MT interviewed our Director about 🦦 and shared her art.
🧵👇