The World of the Sea Otter

This beautifully illustrated book tells us plenty about the smallest sea mammal. It begins by showing some wonderful pictures of sea otters and telling about their ultradensely furry waterproof coats. A sea otter can wander onto land, but it is very clumsy out of the water. It may spend its whole life in the sea. About 300 years ago, there were over 150,000 sea otters, maybe twice that many. But there was extensive hunting which reduced the population to one or two thousand. In 1911, the remaining ones were protected under the Fur Seal agreement. Now, the population is back to 150,000. They tend to live off the California coast, off Vancouver Island, off the Aleutians and off the Kuriles. Sea otters don't like deep water, because they want to find food on the sea floor. And they prefer a depth of only about 75 feet, although they can dive twice that deep. We get to see photos of sea otters at lunch, and of some of the food available to them. We also are told of how the sea otter has fared in its interactions with humans. We've hunted them, and threatened them with atom bomb tests and oil spills. But now they seem to be doing better. I think it would be a terrible shame if we were unable to protect these marvellous creatures.

This book is very well researched and clearly written. However, it is the photography which makes it a masterpiece. Jeff Foott's pictures are incredibly sensitive and perceptive. He takes the reader not only into the nature of the otter itself, but also into the milieu of Monterey Bay with it's abundant food supply, opportunities for procreation, and human and non-human hazards.