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Oregon Coast Aquarium Whoops It Up with Otters |
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Covering 180 miles of Oregon coast travel: Astoria, Seaside, Cannon Beach, Manzanita, Nehalem, Wheeler, Rockaway, Garibaldi, Tillamook, Oceanside, Pacific City, Lincoln City, Depoe Bay, Newport, Waldport, Yachats & Florence.
09/18/07
Secrets of the Season |
Oregon Coast Aquarium Whoops It Up with Otters
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| It's a week full of sea otters at the Oregon Coast Aquarium |
(Newport, Oregon) - The Oregon Coast Aquarium will observe Sea Otter Awareness Week September 23 – September 29, a weeklong event to educate the public about the integral role that sea otters play in the marine ecosystem. The seven-day cute-fest will include talks by mammalogists, sea otter crafts and an abundance of literature about sea otters’ natural history and amazing adaptations. For more information about national observances, visit http://www.defenders.org/seaotter/awareness.
Sea Otter Awareness Week Schedule
September
23 – September 29
Each Day - Sea otter biofact table
Each Day - Sea otter feeding narrations
Sunday, September 23
Talk by mammalogist - 1:30
Sea otter craft - all day
Sea otter encounter - 12:30
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| Seal entertains a boy at the aquarium |
Storytelling – 1 - 3 p.m.
Wednesday, September 26
Talk by mammalogist – 1:30
Saturday, September 29
Sea otter craft - all day
Storytelling – 1 – 3 p.m.
Sea otter encounter - 12:30
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The
last sea otter in Oregon was trapped near Newport in 1906. Sea Otters
once ranged in number along the coasts of the North Pacific, from Russia
and northern Japan, throughout the Aleutians, down the coasts of Alaska
and British Columbia, to as far south as Baja. Scientists estimate up
to 300,000 sea otters once inhabited this area. That changed in 1741 when
traders realized that sea otter pelts were sought after for the unusually
dense fur that enables them to survive in cold seas without the blubber
of whales or sea lions. Of the three remaining subspecies of sea otters
around the world, two are found here in North America: the southern, or
California sea otter and the northern sea otter. The third subspecies
is the Russian sea otter.
Sea
otters play a critical role in the marine ecosystem as a keystone species.
They promote a healthy kelp forest that, in turn, supports thousands of
organisms. Sea otters are also an indicator or sentinel species. They
are dying of diseases that have land-based connections. Since humans and
sea otters eat many of the same seafood items, high rates of sea otter
disease may be a warning for both human health and marine ecosystem health.
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The Oregon Coast Aquarium has participated in a sea otter breeding loan program with the Seattle Aquarium. Two sea otter pups born there are the offspring of Adaa, who was sent to Seattle on breeding loan from the Oregon Coast Aquarium. Adaa’s first pup, a male named Chugach, was born in 2005, to Aniak who was a first time mother. The second pup, named Alki, also a male, was born in 2005 to Lootas.
“The
sea otters have been very cooperative this summer,” says Judy Tuttle,
Aquarium Curator of Mammals. “In general, they are a nice bunch
of guys who are getting along. We’ve seen no major fights and they
seem to be very easy with each others’ company. The Oregon Coast
Aquarium is very fortunate in having the largest sea otter exhibit in
North America and in addition, it is well designed with lots of visual
barriers so the guys can each stake out a small territory out of sight
of the others,” said Tuttle.
Oregon Coast Aquarium. Ferry Slip Road, in South Beach, across the bay from Newport. (541) 867-3474. www.aquarium.org.
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