California Sea Otters Face New Threats As An Ecosystem Shifts – Analysis

By Christine Heinrichs

The sea otter pup was tiny, probably less than 2 weeks old, alone in Morro Bay on an October morning earlier this year. A kayaker scooped it out of the water after listening to it endlessly crying for its mother. It was in growing danger, starting to float out toward the mouth of the bay. Back onshore, the rescuer wrapped the pup in a cloth, nestled it in a box and called the Marine Mammal Center to report it.

A 10-person rescue team arrived, led by Shayla Zink, the center’s operations coordinator.