What is "sea otter"

Sea otter \Sea" ot"ter\ (Zo["o]l.) An aquatic carnivore ( Enhydris lutris syn. Enhydris marina) found in the North Pacific Ocean. Its fur is highly valued, especially by the Chinese. It is allied to the common otter, but is larger, with feet more decidedly webbed.

Sea-otter's cabbage (Bot.), a gigantic kelp of the Pacific Ocean ( Nereocystis Lutkeana). See Nereocystis.

Otter \Ot"ter\ ([o^]t"t[~e]r), n. [OE. oter, AS. otor; akin to D. & G. otter, Icel. otr, Dan. odder, Sw. utter, Lith. udra, Russ, vuidra, Gr. "y`dra water serpent, hydra, Skr. udra otter, and also to E. water. [root]137, 215. See Water, and cf. Hydra.]

1. (Zo["o]l.) Any carnivorous animal of the genera Lutra, Enhydra, and related genera of the family Mustelidae. Several species are described. They have large, flattish heads, short ears, and webbed toes. They are aquatic, and feed on fish. The sea otter ( Enhydra lutris) also eats clams, crabs, starfish, abalone, and other marine animals; they may come to the surface, and lying on their backs using the stomach as a table, may be seen cracking open the shell of its prey with a rock. The common otter of Europe is Lutra vulgaris; the North American otter (or American otter) is Lutra Canadensis, which inhabits marshes, streams and rivers; other species inhabit South America and Asia. The North American otter adult is about three to four feet long (including the tail) and weighs from 10 to 30 pounds; the sea otter is commonly four feet long and 45 pounds (female) or 60 pounds (male). Their fur is soft and valuable, and in the nineteenth century they were hunted extensively. The sea otter was hunted to near extinction by 1900, and is now protected. Fewer than 3,000 sea otters are believed to live along the central California coast.

2. (Zo["o]l.) The larva of the ghost moth. It is very injurious to hop vines.

   Otter hound, Otter dog (Zo["o]l.), a small breed of hounds, used in England for hunting otters; see otterhound .

   Otter sheep. See Ancon sheep, under Ancon.

   Otter shell (Zo["o]l.), very large bivalve mollusk ( Schizoth[ae]rus Nuttallii) found on the northwest coast of America. It is excellent food, and is extensively used by the Indians.

   Sea otter. (Zo["o]l.) See in the Vocabulary.

n. A marine mammal native to the northern Pacific Ocean, (taxlink Enhydra lutris species noshow=1)

n. large marine otter of northern Pacific coasts having very thick dark brown fur [syn: Enhydra lutris]

The sea otter (Enhydra lutris) is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals. Unlike most marine mammals, the sea otter's primary form of insulation is an exceptionally thick coat of fur, the densest in the animal kingdom. Although it can walk on land, the sea otter lives mostly in the ocean.

The sea otter inhabits offshore environments, where it dives to the sea floor to forage. It preys mostly on marine invertebrates such as sea urchins, various molluscs and crustaceans, and some species of fish. Its foraging and eating habits are noteworthy in several respects. First, its use of rocks to dislodge prey and to open shells makes it one of the few mammal species to use tools. In most of its range, it is a keystone species, controlling sea urchin populations which would otherwise inflict extensive damage to kelp forest ecosystems. Its diet includes prey species that are also valued by humans as food, leading to conflicts between sea otters and fisheries.

Sea otters, whose numbers were once estimated at 150,000–300,000, were hunted extensively for their fur between 1741 and 1911, and the world population fell to 1,000–2,000 individuals living in a fraction of their historic range. A subsequent international ban on hunting, conservation efforts, and reintroduction programs into previously populated areas have contributed to numbers rebounding, and the species now occupies about two-thirds of its former range. The recovery of the sea otter is considered an important success in marine conservation, although populations in the Aleutian Islands and California have recently declined or have plateaued at depressed levels. For these reasons, the sea otter remains classified as an endangered species.

The sea otter (Enhydra lutris) is a marine mammal:

• The European otter (Lutra lutra) is sometimes called "sea otter" when seen living on sea coasts.

Sea otter may also refer to:

• Sea Otter Classic, a bicycling sports festival in Monterey, California, in the United States
• Sea Otter Cove, a remote place near the north-western end of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada
• Sea Otter Rocks, rocks of the Commander Islands in the Bering Sea
• Supermarine Sea Otter, a British flying boat of the late 1930s and 1940s

• , a United States Navy patrol boat in commission from 1917 to 1919

• , a United States Navy experimental auxiliary ship in commission from July to November 1941

• , a United States Navy experimental auxiliary ship in commission from 1941 to 1942