Morning swim

  

Nice view of a River Otter along the shoreline of Bodega Harbor this morning (15 October 2025).

When the otter dove, it was calm enough to see bubbles trailing at the surface, offering hints of its route under water: 

 

 

P.S.  We wondered about the origin of the bubbles.  Sounds like air trapped in the otter's fur might be released as it swims.
 

Ouch

  

This is a follow-up to my last post on River Otters...and a bit of a puzzle.  I had to sort through some photos, but when I was looking at some of them I realized the mother otter had a fairly serious injury.  In the photo above, you can see several oblong lacerations in a row, and I think there was at least 1-2 more of those on her rump and near the base of the tail.  You can also see another larger laceration closer to her mid-section (in front of her hind leg).  

I'm not sure what caused these injuries, but my first thought was wondering whether it could have been a shark.  Researchers at UC Santa Cruz have documented an increase in sea otters with shark wounds (and years ago I found one sea otter on a local beach that had been bitten by a shark), but I haven't heard about shark bites and River Otters.  Have you?  Or can you think of other possible causes for this type of injury?  I'd be interested in any feedback.

If you are concerned about the otter, I'll note that she appeared to be active — swimming and catching fish (for herself and her pups) despite the injury.  And I also saw her the next day (more parts of this story to come!).

3 for 3,000

Whew, well it's hard to believe, but this is post #3000!  (3000 posts over 10.5 years.)  So here's a little video clip to mark the occasion.

This is an older video (from 2018), but I've wanted to share it for a while.  It shows a River Otter family (a mother and three pups) on a morning outing — waking up from a nap, using a communal latrine, sliding down some Feather Boa kelp into the water, swimming along the shoreline together.  And it includes audio!  I've written about otter calls before — the pups use a high-pitched bird-like chirp to keep in touch with the rest of the family.

On this day I was working quietly in the low intertidal zone when I noticed this otter family swimming by.  They swam past me, climbed up onto the seaweed-covered rocks, and curled up for a nap!  I didn't want to disturb them, so I kept working and watched for activity out of the corner of my eye.  Eventually they woke up and that's when this video clip starts. 

I didn't know the otters were going to make their way back towards where I was working.  You'll see that eventually they notice me.  One of the pups makes sure the others know about me, too, and then they continue along the shoreline.

I hope you enjoy this little window into the life of River Otters.  Thanks so much for checking into the Natural History of Bodega Head blog.  Knowing you're out there inspires me to keep learning and to keep sharing.  Who knows how far beyond #3000 we'll go!

 

 

P.S.  Many thanks to Eric for helping to edit this video, and for participating in so many NHBH blog posts!

Digging for crabs

Last night I mentioned that we encountered a River Otter (Lontra canadensis) feeding on Mole Crabs (Emerita analoga).  We spent some time watching the otter and documenting the behavior, so here's a bit of a photo journal:

Padding along in the surf zone:

 

Stopping to dig for crabs.  The otter wasn't messing around.  It would actively dig with its front legs, bulldoze through the sand with its snout, and sometimes it would bury its entire head in the sand! 

 

 

 

 

The otter seemed quite successful capturing prey.  When chewing crabs, the otter often assumed this distinctive position with its nose pointed towards the sky (making it look similar to a sea lion):

 

Sometimes the otter caught female Mole Crabs carrying eggs (note the bright orange color):

 

Between prey captures, the otter would look around:

 

And sometimes shake its wet fur:

 

The otter and Sanderlings seemed to keep an eye on each other:

 

Every time we encounter a River Otter, we learn something new and have more questions about them.  And every time, I'm grateful for a few minutes with such an endearing animal.

 

Crab opener

The recreational crab season opened today (2 November 2019).  Most fishermen were headed out after Dungeness Crab (Cancer magister), but one seemed more interested in catching Mole Crabs (Emerita analoga):

Quiet times

 

We've had to do some field work down near Carmel, CA, so here are a few quick shots from the Point Lobos area on 30 August 2019.

Below, these sea otters were a bit distant, but it's always nice to see them.  (The otter in foreground with a paler face is an adult, while the otter in the background with the darker facial fur is a juvenile.)

 

Not a seal

I was doing a Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina) survey today, slowly scanning across the shoreline to count individual seals hauled out on the rocks.

Then I did a double-take.  Hold on.  That's not a seal.

 

A River Otter (Lontra canadensis) was eating a fish.  The seal was more interested in napping, but two Western Gulls (Larus occidentalis) were wondering if they might snatch some of the scraps.

Eventually the otter finished eating, left the rest of the fish to the gulls, and walked down to the water's edge:

 

I liked being able to see its front and hind feet.

 

Meaningful moments

I've been thinking about how so many people in California are having such a hard time right now.  During difficult times in my life, I've often looked to nature.  Whether its for distraction, inspiration, perspective, or motivation, I hope that observing nature can help you through these challenging times.

Here are a few more of my favorite pictures of River Otters taken earlier this month.

Young otters waiting for mom to return:

 

Mom with the remains of a fish she caught after the young ones ate the rest:

 

Young otter resting:

 

With appreciation and gratitude, and the very best wishes from our hearts to yours on Thanksgiving. 

 

Waiting

This week I felt lucky to catch another glimpse of a local River Otter (Lontra canadensis) family.  This time they were fishing along the rocky shore.  While the mother was swimming and diving offshore, two young otters waited expectantly for her return.

First, the mom, diving below the surface:

 

And the two little ones, looking out to sea, wondering where she is and what she'll bring back:

 

(They didn't have to wait too long for dinner — mom was successful and returned with a very nice fish!)

Loping along

I can't help posting one more River Otter photo.  After they finished feeding in the swash zone, this family of three (mom on the right) loped along the shore for a bit before leaving the beach.  It's a nice view of otters in motion — and check out those broad feet!  [This photo was taken with a large zoom lens and then heavily cropped, so I was much farther away than it looks.]

 

I hope this helps cheer up your day! 

 

Heads in the sand

Some interesting observations of River Otters (Lontra canadensis) this morning (3 October 2018).  This group of three otters was spending some time in the swash zone on a sandy beach:

 

From their postures, it appeared they might be feeding.  Note the young otter on the far left — the nose-up position is one that you often see when otters are eating something.  And check out the mother otter on the far right with her head curved downward.  She appears to be holding something and perhaps chewing on it or manipulating a prey item in some way.

I started to wonder if they might be eating Mole Crabs (Emerita analoga).  So I took a few more pictures.  Watch the young otter in the middle of the photo — you can see it "bulldozing" its head through the sand, perhaps in pursuit of a crab:

 

 

And here's one more photo, with all three otters lined up.  It looks like the younger otter in the foreground might be using its paw to dig at something in the sand:

 

I've read about Sea Otters (Enhydra lutris) eating Mole Crabs, but I haven't seen reference to River Otters doing so.  Perhaps it's an opportunistic behavior?

 

Places to rest

A couple of days ago I had another really lucky encounter with River Otters (Lontra canadensis).  Fortunately, I had a large zoom lens on my camera and I was pretty far away in a position where the otters couldn't see me.  These are my favorite situations, when you can observe animals' natural behavior without disturbing them.  

I cropped the photos afterwards and put together a short series of highlights.  The entire observation period was ~50 minutes total.  I'm very grateful for this special glimpse into the life of River Otters.  I hope you enjoy learning about them, too!

A mother and two pups rolling in the gritty sand along the edge of a coastal bluff (perhaps to help dry off?):

 

Taking a nap together in the sun: 

 

Waking up and preparing for another adventure: 

 

Waiting for mom to scope out the scene:

 

Following the rocks down to the water: 

 

Going for a swim:

 

 

Not a bad way to spend part of an afternoon!  These observations made me think more about how River Otters might use coastal bluffs and protected channels and pools and made me feel happy that they can find quiet places to rest.

Not independent yet

Encounters with River Otters (Lontra canadensis) always have a way of making you feel lucky.

 

Today (4 July 2018) we observed a mother and two pups.  Above, that's the mother in the middle and one pup to either side.


Here's a close-up of the mother and one pup (below).  It appeared that the pup was riding along on the mother's back (at least in part):

 

One more, of the two pups together:

 

River Otter pups stay with their mothers for about 9 months (!).  So these pups aren't independent yet, but they're in-training.

 P.S.  Happy Independence Day! 

Not a drift log

I was driving along Westshore Road at the north end of Bodega Harbor this morning when an unusual silhouette in the water caught my eye.  I said to myself, "Hmmm...I don't think that's a drift log."

 

Sea otters (Enhydra lutris) are rare in the Bodega Bay area, so I stopped to take a few pictures:

 

The otter was resting while floating on its back:

 

  

Eventually it swam (with a corkscrew motion) further from shore.  Here's a picture with the Spud Point Marina in the background:

 

This is the third sea otter I've seen in the Bodega Bay region (during the past 12 years).  The first was near the harbor entrance in December 2006; and the second was found dead (from a shark attack) on Salmon Creek Beach in September 2011.  [We also heard about one photographed from a sailboat in Bodega Bay in April 2015.]

Who knows if sea otters will ever become established in this area again, but for now it's always fun to see them whenever they wander this way.

 

Sometimes...

...it makes your day just to sit and watch:

 

 

River Otter (Lontra canadensis), 15 April 2017

Happy face

 

Well, what do you know...we were doing field work tonight when we noticed a little face just offshore looking our way.

We had to keep working, but then out of the corner of my eye I noticed that the River Otter was getting out of the water and onto a patch of surfgrass:

 

The light was dim, and this was a distant view, but I'm not sure I have a picture of a River Otter in the rocky intertidal zone yet...so here's one!

The otter had caught something and it proceeded to eat its prey (a fish?) in a more protected channel among the kelp:

 

This series of photos was a fun follow-up to last night's post — "Happy feet" — about River Otter tracks.

P.S.  And for some additional information about River Otter tracks, see the post from 2 April 2013.

Happy feet

 

River Otter tracks heading towards the ocean

Photographed 10 December 2016

On the dock

 

 

 

 

:)

River Otters (Lontra canadensis), 

photographed on a dock in Bodega Harbor, 10 October 2016