Washington Sea Otter Background and Recovery

In North America, the northern sea otter (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) once ranged from the western Aleutian Islands of Alaska south to Oregon. The northern sea otter population, like the southern sea otter declined throughout its North American range due to hunting and the fur trade. But thanks to recovery efforts, northern sea otters can now be found in the coastal waters of Alaska, Canada and Washington state.

Washington state sea otters are listed as “state endangered”. They are also protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Reintroduction efforts dating back to thirty years ago are largely responsible for the recovery of sea otters in Washington, Canada, and parts of southeast Alaska. Between 1965 and 1972, 700 northern sea otters were captured at Amchitka, an island in the Aleutian chain, and Prince William Sound and were translocated to other sites in Alaska as well as British Columbia, Washington and Oregon.

From 1969 to 1970, 59 sea otters were relocated to Washington. These transported otters initially showed a decline and then the growth rate, up until 1977, was very slow. But between 1977-1983, the population had an average annual growth rate of 18% and from 1978 to 1987, the average annual growth rate was nearly 21%. This average annual growth rate was halved to 10% after 1989 until 2000, when the population was down by 17%."

The current population of approximately 800 animals in Washington, based on 2006 survey results, is spread out along seventy miles of coastline from Destruction Island in the south to Pillar Point (in the Strait of Juan de Fuca) in the north. Washington sea otter’s range is extremely small.

Through extensive comments and monitoring the progress of this vulnerable and fragile population of sea otters, Defenders of Wildlife has is helping reduce any impediments to the growth of this small population.

One catastrophic event, such as an oil spill could easily wipe out the entire population. The Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 demonstrated that the trajectory of the oil path could wipe out entire sea otter populations geographically limited in range. This tragedy also served to remind us how detrimental oil is to the sea otter. Thousands of sea otters died from hypothermia, drowning or damage to internal organs through ingestion. At least three oil spills have affected Washington ’s outer coast in the last few decades. Fortunately, none approached the magnitude of the Exxon Valdez spill. But because of the sea otter’s susceptibility to grave impacts from oil spills, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife encouraged their addition to the state’s endangered list. Oil spills are a continuing threat to any sea otter population.

Unfortunately, the reintroduction efforts in Oregon were not successful. Out of 93 sea otters translocated to Oregon in 1970 and 1971, they failed to establish for unknown reasons. Since 1981, sea otters have not been observed in Oregon.