Two rescued southern sea otters make their debut at the New York Aquarium. These orphaned females were found off the coast of California when they were still cubs. They decided to take the sea otters.
At first, marine predators lived in different zoos. Now their permanent home will be the New York Aquarium.
Southern sea otters live on the coast of California. Once the population of these animals was in the hundreds of thousands. But in the XVIII-XIX centuries, sea otters began to be exterminated for the sake of valuable fur. As a result, the species was endangered. Already at the beginning of the XIX century, people thought about preserving sea otters. In some countries, they began to create reserves and prohibit the extermination of these marine mammals.
Now hunting for sea otters is prohibited almost all over the world. An exception was made only for the Aleuts – the indigenous inhabitants of Alaska.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that there are 3,000 southern sea otters in the wild. And the world population reaches about 80,000 individuals.
Over the past 30 years, the New York Aquarium has sheltered 11 rescued sea otters.
