It's Sea Otter Awareness Week!

Photo: Robert Potts © California Academy of Sciences

Organizations across the world will be spotlighting what is perhaps the most adorable member of the weasel family, the sea otter. With fewer than 3,000 southern sea otters off our coast, we Californians should take some time to learn a little more about the threats to these animals and what we can do to help protect them.

Photo: N. Sincero 2011

Here at the Naturalist Center you can make a sea otter puppet or spend some time browsing through our sea otter books.

Photo: N. Sincero 2011

We will also feature sea otters in our programs. Specimen Spotlight (all ages) will give you the opportunity to touch a sea otter pelt, examine some other specimens from our research department and learn some neat facts. It will be on Friday, September 30th, at 11:30 AM. Science Story Adventures (ages 4-8) is on Sunday, October 2nd, at 2:30 PM. We will read some sea otter books, look at some specimens and do a craft.

We hope you can join us this week in raising awareness about sea otters. In the meantime, check out Philippe Cousteau in a video from last year's Sea Otter Awareness Week: