In July of 2016, my husband and I visited Monterey Bay. This marked the first time I’d seen sea otters in their natural habitat. These three photos show a small raft of otters in the Elkhorn Slough area. One of the buildings is where you can rent kayaks, like you see in the first photo. There are signs posted that by federal law you have to be 50 yards away from the otters and that they are a protected species. I’ve seen videos of otters popping up on these kayaks and though cute, it’s not something I’d want to experience. Sea otters can be mean and they have a nasty bite. As well, it’s not safe for the sea otter to think humans are safe.

These otters are examples of the 60% that are decedents of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Sea Otter Program, also known as SORAC.