Geographic/Population Changes

Historically, southern sea otters could be found ranging from Oregon all the way down to Baja California. However, following almost two centuries of commercial hunting, sea otter populations were severely reduced, as surviving southern sea otters consisted of a small colony of otters along the remote Big Sur coast of central California. However, sadly enough, southern sea otters occupy only about 13% of their historic range today, as their current population extends along the central California coast from Monterey Bay in the North to Point Conception in the south near Santa Barbara.

Prior to the commercial hunting of sea otters in the late 1700s and into the early 1900s, there was an estimated 150,000 to 300,000 southern sea otters thriving in kelp forests all over the west coast! However, after an onslaught of commercial hunting, recent spread of disease, algal blooms, oil spills, chemical and plastic pollution, and shark attacks, their estimated population has dwindled down to a mere 2,962 otters as of 2019! I don't know about you, but it definitely seems that something has to be done! And fast! Hearing news such as this is very devastating, and leaves us feeling hopeless. We may feel that we are just sitting back while unique species such as the Southern Sea Otter slowly die off because of our own human actions. However, I have great news! This dilemma has been recognized and there are people out there trying to improve the situation at hand. Continue reading on to learn how the Southern Sea Otters are being helped and even what you can do!