Flotilla

  

We were in Monterey yesterday (5 June 2026) for a concert, but we drove down early to spend a little time along the coast.  Here's a nice seascape including a flotilla of sea otters in the kelp offshore from Pacific Grove.  [You can click on the photo for a larger version.]

Tool chest?

  

We had to do some field work in Monterey County yesterday, but we arrived a little early, so had a few minutes to observe a few sea otters while eating lunch in Pacific Grove.  

The first sea otters we saw were actively munching on sea urchins -- above, and next two photos:

 

 

 

But then our attention was drawn to a hard slapping sound, and we turned to see an otter trying to crack open a large mussel against a rock that was balanced on the otter's chest:

 

 

 

Several times we watched this otter dive down, bring up a rock and a mussel (or clump of mussels)...and then use the rock like an anvil -- hammering the mussel against the rock.

 

Sea otters are known to do this, but I hadn't photographed it before, so here are a few more images.  (Tool-use by mammals aside from humans is rare.)  In each picture, look for a rock resting on the otter's chest and a mussel between the otter's paws.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were reading up on this behavior at the end of the day and came across an interesting research paper about tool use by sea otters just published in May 2024.

 

It turns out that using rocks as tools to access hard-shelled prey might be especially important for female otters in areas where their preferred and easier-to-process prey (e.g., abalone and urchins) aren't as common.  And using the rocks to open hard-shelled prey can prevent tooth damage and give the otters access to an alternative food source that otherwise wouldn't be available by biting alone.

Law et al. 2024. Tool use increases mechanical foraging success and tooth health in southern sea otters (Enhydra lutris nereis).  Science 384: 798-802.

 

Pawsing for prey?

  

We're working down in Monterey County for a couple of days.  At the end of field work this morning (11 August 2022), a Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris) swam by, diving and coming up with Purple Sea Urchins (Stronglycentrotus purpuratus).  (The otter is holding an urchin between its paws.)

Like mother, like otter?

During our recent visit to the Carmel area, we noticed a couple of sea otters (Enhydra lutris) offshore.  Here's a mom and a pup grooming (above), nursing (below), and a few extras of the pup, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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 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.

 

Sea otters in Pacific Grove

Pictures from Pacific Grove, California, on 24 February 2012.  Several sea otter mother/pup pairs were visible from the shoreline.  Here are a few scenes: a mother carrying a pup on her chest, a mother/pup feeding, a pair floating in a wave.

 

 

 

[Although sea otters used to be more common at Bodega Head (before the mid-1800s), I've only heard of two sightings of individuals during the last 10 years.]