Sea Otter Metabolics

Manatees can maintain homeostasis in three ways. "They can use their body fat for insulation in cold waters to keep their body temperature above 68 degrees until they get to warmer waters. They can control the salt levels with the blood and if it gets too high, they can bring it down to more approved levels when they sort the blood out and finally they can use their lungs to help them adjust to a difference in pressure.

The observations under the polarizing light microscopy of otter hair in water resulted that air bubbles that are trapped in the hollows between the fins or petals of the underhairs and in some areas where the guard hairs located. This may be another reason why the conductance of otter fur increases less than that of the snowshoe hare when placed in water as discussed in the article. Some significant finding were found and discussed of how river otters have waterproofed, smooth coats that act as insulation. A layer of fat sits below the smooth coat, providing the otters with added insulation. Another one is that both river and sea otters have less insulating fat and must rely on heir fur for thermal insulation. The use of air as thermal insulation is very efficient due to the fact of the thermal conductivity of air is only ten percent of fat and thirty percent of water. The discussion in class is relevant to this paper due to the some major points such as lipids, proteins, and DNA. The outer fur on river otters symbolized as fats or lipids in which the fats surrounding any area on their body as protection. River otters were discovered of cross-polarity due to staying in water for a long amount of time. This effected the environment by the change in the codon mutation of DNA of river otters. In conclusion to this experiment, when water enters the outer area of hydrophobic layer of oils, air bubbles are entangled between hairs and results a decrease of thermal conduction in the adaptation of river

The muskox can survive in the tundra due to its large coat of rough hair on its body. It lives in the tundra to find what it needs to stay sustained such as roots, mosses and lichens.Next the Arctic Hare survives in the tundra because it has shortened ears and limbs, a wad small nose, fat that makes up 20% of its body, and a thick coat of fur. It live in the Tundra because that is its place of origin.Third the Polar Bear survives in the tundra because it has a big fur coat over a thick warm coat of fat. It stays in the arctic or tundra due to those locations have the food source they need to survive.Fourth the Arctic fox survives in the Tundra because the furry soles, short ears and short muzzle which are good for chilly climates. They stay

Bull kelps have strands about 30 meters long with floats to help keep the algae close to the surface within reach of the sunlight. Because California has a consideration amount of sunlight, the giant kelp can be found along the coastal regions. Because of this, California sea otters gather in the kelp forest and snooze during spring. To prevent themselves from being drift away by tides and currents, they anchor themselves by scraps of kelp around their body. In some aspects, sea otters are guardians of the region. Several creatures that shelter in the kelp have to venture in the opening to feed, like the bat ray. They feed in the sandy floor of the open sea, they use jet of water to blown the sand away and expose invertebrates. They will either eat or be

The lecture explained how the population of sea otters declined, due to the environmental pollution. First, the oil rigs along the Alaskan coat serve as an indication to pollution. This directly refutes the reading passage which states that predation was most likely the reason, since the bodies of the dead sea otters didn't wash on the shores.Secondly, the passage mention that the water samples that were extracted from the sea revealed the presence of chemicals. Again, this contradicts with the lecture which claims that the whales which the otters consume were not available anymore. Which had forced the sea otters to change their diet to include small sea animals. Thirdly, the lecture mentions that the decrease in sea otters population was

The area of research that I have selected is the effects of overfishing in the Sea Otter ecosystem off the coast of California. The effects caused by the fishing pressure on the ecosystem will have different outcomes, depending on the strength and the types of relationships of the organisms present. (4) Red Abalone populations have declined drastically, to the point of the abalone fishery collapse. Several factors have led up to the collapse including Withering Syndrome, where the organism loses the ability to attach itself to rocks, making it more susceptible to predation, or the organism can eventually wither and starve to death. Sea Urchins and Red Abalone are a part of the same ecosystem, and are competitors of each other.(5) Both organisms graze on macroalgae and are a primary food source for Sea Otters. Sea Otters occurred from the North Pacific Rim down to Baja California, Mexico, but now only occur in small isolated patches (9) It is understood that Sea Otter presence can characterize community structure, where they can control and determine the size of Sea Urchin and Red Abalone populations. In the absence of Sea Otters, “Urchin Barrens” are created from the overgrazing of macroalgae by Sea Urchin. In these areas the ecosystem have changed dramatically, due to the overfishing, or in this case the over hunting, of Sea Otters causing a trophic cascade.(7)In some areas, Sea Otters have been reintroduced, in other areas they were never removed, and in others they

In a documentary film directed by Bill Wisenski, “Threatened: The Controversial Struggle of the Southern Sea Otter,” it reveals some of the reasons why the California sea otter population is declining. In addition, it shows the controversy surrounding the “No Otter Zone”. Furthermore, it ensures why the California sea otter population is important to the marine ecosystem. In the film, sea otter populations are endangered because of the significant impact by some human factors. In the 1700’s and 1800’s, fur traders hunted sea otter population to near extinction. Besides this, threatened events such as shipping and drilling oil across the Pacific and along coastal areas; the California sea otters is vulnerable to oil contamination. As a result,

In this article “saving the sea otters is just part of her normal day at work” by Kitson Jazynka My Opinion was that I think a lot of the sea mammals are dying because the bacteria in the water. First of all,”Otters in Alaska have been dying at a higher than normal rate over the past 10 years.”This quote

The reading passage tries to give some reasons to show that the number of sea otters, a small mammal living along the western coast of North America, has significantly declined because of the environmental pollution. On the other hand, the professor on the lecture looks at this concept through a different lens and believes that attacking by the predators like orca are possible for this problem.

SInce the dawn of time humans have been constantly evolving and at the same time ravaging the earth. The Otters know this, which is why the Otters see the humans as a great threat, but on the other side

Sea otters, (Enhydra lutris), are considered a keystone species, and for this reason, can be useful indicators of nearshore ecosystem health (Kreuder et al. 2003). With the implementation of the Marine Mammal Protection Act, southern sea otter (Enhydra lutris nereis) populations within their California range rebounded from post fur trade levels of approximately 50-60 in 1938, to more than 3000 today. However, growth rates have been slower than expected for this population (Riedman and Estes 1990). Definitive explanation for this is unclear, but contributing factors may be that sea otters face a range of physiological and environmental challenges to reproduce.

Animals differ in their abilities to regulate body temperature (thermoregulation). We sometimes use the terms "cold-blooded" or "warm-blooded." Most reptiles feel cold to the touch, while mammals and birds often feel warm.

The North American River Otter’s color can vary from light brown to almost black, and they have wide, rounded heads, small ears and nostrils that can be closed underwater. The females are usually around 3.2 feet long, are 11-30 pounds, and their tail is almost ⅓ of their total length! The males are bigger than the females at 3.7 feet long, 12-32 pounds, and their tail is also ⅓ of their total length. They also have webbed feet to help them go faster in the water, and waterproof, velvety fur that keeps them

Evolution of the polar bear also resulted in curved, needle-sharp claws for clinging to ice and grabbing prey. In addition, they developed large, partially webbed paws to assist with swimming. On land, their enormous paws are useful for traveling across loose snow and the paws provide a bigger area to spread their weight across on thin ice. Another adaptation is the polar bear’s longer neck which is needed to keep their head above water when swimming (Polar Bear Evolution 1995). All of these characteristics, unique to the polar bear, have been part of its evolution.

The presence or absence of sea otters influences marine ecology at the community-level. Studies have shown that kelp forests enhance the underwater environment, providing a suitable habitat for fishes. The declining kelp beds in California in the mid 1900’s propelled the Kelp Habitat Improvement Project, whereby attempts were made to eliminate sea urchins that are primary predators of kelps. Studies showed that the elimination of sea otters during the 1800s from the Californian waters might be responsible for the dwindling numbers of kelp forests. Further studies have also shown that the population density of sea otters affects seaweed biodiversity as well. In a study conducted in Alaska on three different bays, the Torch Bay, Deer Harbor and the Surge Bay, it was found that the presence of sea otters led to a decrease in the population of sea urchins, which led to an increase in the population of seaweeds. In addition, it was also found that annual kelps predominated the areas where sea otters were present, and perennial kelps predominated in areas that had lesser sea otter populations (qtd. in “Interaction with kelps & sea otters”).