Sea Otter Facts | Facts about Sea Otters

Which animal has the densest fur?

Sea otters have the densest fur of any animal, up to about a million hairs per square inch.

Sea otters sometimes hold hands while sleeping so they don't drift apart.

Sea otters use rocks to crack open shellfish and may keep a favorite rock in a pouch under their arm.

Sea otters eat sea urchins, which keeps urchins from destroying kelp forests.

The fur trade nearly wiped out sea otters, leaving only about 1,000 to 2,000 by the early 1900s.

Sea otters eat about 25% of their body weight every day.

Unlike most marine mammals, sea otters have no blubber.

The sea otter is the smallest marine mammal.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium pairs orphaned sea otter pups with surrogate mothers.

A sea otter known as Otter 841 became famous in 2023 for stealing surfboards in Santa Cruz, California.