Rescued Sea Otter Found Shot, Killed in Morro Bay

California authorities are investigating the fatal shooting of a protected southern sea otter that had been rescued and returned to the ocean last year.

The state Department of Fish and Wildlife said Tuesday that the dead otter was found floating in Morro Bay in September and a necropsy determined it was killed with a pellet gun.

A numbered tag identified the animal as an otter that had previously been found tangled in a fishing line. It was rehabilitated and returned to the wild in July 2016.

Southern sea otters, which are also known as California sea otters, are listed as a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act, are considered depleted under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and are protected by California state law, according to the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Rabies.

Aah. I didn't catch on to that.

Unlikely in a sea otter, but there have been reports of cases with river otters.

Thought of rabies and sea otters never made it to cross-fire connecting in my mind.

But what do I know? I only used to be woken from sleep every morning, for years (whenever a little too long in the rack after first light) by sea otters finishing up removal of the last of the Washington Gaper's (clams) when tied-up there to the South T-Pier, in Morro Bay --land of the never a bad day and home of the newly wed and nearly dead. And fishing boats. A small fishing village with a big power plant --and a large drinking problem? it was those tourists! they drank empty all those bottles of Wild Horse Cab filling the recycling bins outside of GAFCO -- I could see them through the windows, everyday, drinking more, and more. It was enough to drive a fellow to walk up-town for a beer.

It was a nice life for many years.

But as you introduced thought of, the otters would possibly be as subject to getting Ray Bees as their river cousins, if not for living most of their lives not on dry land (they don't 'haul out' much). So you did have a point, but one I didn't catch.

From what I've read about sea otters, they became sea-going otters in the first place in avoiding land predators -- or so the not-unreasonably story goes.

I do recall however, of having Fish & Game biologist approach myself and others with the "news" that sea otters had been sighted in the Estero Bay area (it took a few more years for them to make waters of Morro Bay itself included as regular home).

I thought to myself (and told them) when they excitedly told us the "news" -- reallY? "Ok, I've been looking at them for the last two years...how long has this been a revelation among CDF&G" ...NMFS and maybe NOAA? "Ya'll could tell me that, but I already know the first part."

Besides...just who was it that buried the old mentions (that USED TO exist) of plan to transplant a few animals from up North (trapped in Alaska I think was how it did occur) and drop them off somewhere near Pt. Sur? The plausible deniability excuse is there was a plan to diversify an isolated population with fresh genetics from elsewhere -- but it did not occur -- or if it did, it went according to plan --- simply adding to genetic pool rather than be fully re-introduction into a "void", or even outright introduction.

Whichever way that had truly went, for a few decades (maybe 5?) there was "an isolated colony" of the critters along what we call the Big Sur Coast. Those eventually expanded their range.

As the old-time fisherman tell it (those in the know who'd spent their lives fishing those areas and communicating with others whom did so) otters been transplanted from up North after having allegedly been wiped out some time near, or right before turn of the 20th century --if they'd been there at all prior to Spaniards, and traders of other nationalities arriving willing to pay money for sea mammal hides.

Had they existed there at all by the time Europeans arrived, the animals would not be too difficult to wipe out using canoes, bows, and spears.

One tribe of Big Sur area Indians in particular had truly big and damned good canoes -- the best they'd ever seen according to European/American ship captains, as can be read about in literature touching upon the subject.

IIRC, those particular 'native Americans' were also markedly differing in appearance than other tribes -- most of which they did not get along with very well. They lived near to where Nepenthe is now, I think I'm remembering...

I cannot recall that tribe's exact name, but the literature I'd encountered on the subject was from among oldest written European language records pertaining to the subject, which had as included among it's focus, efforts of one, or a few men to conduct interviews of the oldest living Indians (using translators) asking them of what they knew of their own tribes past histories. I'm pretty sure there is no mention in those sources of "sea" otters fwiw. If I come across the information (found online) again, I'll keep an eye out for it -- but I seem to remember having been looking for that as I went along, back when I'd first encountered the literature.

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