Humble Pocket Gophers Shed Light On The Genetic Fortitude Of Cheetahs
...cally impoverished species, such as California sea otters and elephant seals, may have little variability among their immune systems and thus may be more vulnerable to outbreaks of disease. "Genetic variation is the stuff of evolution," says Sanjayan. "It allows a population to adapt effectively to changes ...Purdue Researchers Track Oil Spill's Effects On Sea Otters
...ST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Studies on the health of sea otters in Alaska are helping scientists understand how an... of exposure to oil. Initial results indicate that otters living in the spill area have a higher level of this enzyme, called cytochrome P450, than control ot...Smoke breathes new life into a forest
...ore the effects of scent-marking behavior of river otters on surrounding terrestrial plants in south-central Alaska. River otters deposit urine and feces at specific sites along the coast, known as latrines. The researchers found...USGS Finds Sea Otters At Risk From Killer Whales In A Changing Ocean
.... "We estimate that between 40,000 and 45,000 sea otters have died since 1990 fromkiller whale predation in... "This unusualbehavior of killer whales toward sea otters ultimately raises questions aboutthe health of our oceans." In a chain of events possibly initiated ......ng thearea's marine ecosystems. The decline in sea otters has allowed their primaryprey, sea urchins, to inc...The new phenomenon of killer whales preying on sea otters appears to be one linkin a chain of interactions extending from the open sea to the coastal zone and...Swimming Proficiency Of Marine Mammals Ranks Them Among The World's Elite Animal Athletes
...nd out of the water, the way modern mink and river otters do,Williams noted. The sea otter is an unusual ca... most of its time in the water. Williams views sea otters asliving on an "evolutionary edge," meeting their energetic requirements by such aslim margin that t...USGS reports continued decline of California sea otters
The spring 1999 survey of 2,090 California sea otters indicates the population has declined overall...ll adults and subadults. That category of sea otters declined nearly 5 percent, from 1,955 in spring 1998 to 1,858 in spring 1999. Spring ...USGS scientist awarded prestigious Marine Conservation Fellowship
...predators' roles in ecosystems began with sea otters in western Alaska in the 1970's. He was a co-discoverer of the sea otter's keystone role in kelp forests. The sea otter, said Estes, is the top predator in a coastal food web composed of sea otter, sea urchin and kelp. The sea otter fe...USGS finds elevated levels of organochlorine pesticides in Aleutian bald eagles
...laskan ecosystems -- sea lions, seals and sea otters -- have declined substantially in the North Pacific Ocean over the last several decades. While overfishing and temperature regime shifts have been blamed, the role contaminants may play in these declines should be investigated further....USGS reports increase of sea otters in recent survey
The spring 2000 survey of 2,317 California sea otters indicates an overall increase by 10.9 percent sinc...ornia sea otter, says Estes. The population of sea otters in central California increased this century at an average annual rate of about 5 percent until the ...Using hard science to protect fragile seas
...heli is greeted by a flotilla of harbor seals, sea otters and sea lions, while flocks of brown pelicans and ...r stricter enforcement of fishing limits. Urchins, otters and fish Recent studies have shown that even small no-take zones can significantly increase the size...Overfishing sets the stage for other problems in marine ecosystems
...icle cites the elimination of predators such assea otters on the West Coast and of predatory fish from the Gulf of Maineas the primary factor in the loss of kelp beds. Otters and predatory fishkept sea urchins, which eat kelp, in check. Kelp forests are importanthabitats that support diverse marine communit......great whales to sea lions and most recently to sea otters ultimately causing sea urchin barrens and the loss of kelp forests. Responding only to current events on a case-by-case basis cannot solve the oceans problems because impacts of human disturbance are synergistic and have deep historical roots. Ecol...Scientists: Collapse of coastal ecosystems tied to past overfishing
...ning underwater kelp forests -- Overfishing of sea otters in the Northern Pacific starting with aboriginal ...ial habitat for young fishes. Recent protection of otters has helped, but killer whales now are eating the otters. Thats because people have overfished the fi...Scientists examine the seas our ancestors fished to better understand today's changing oceans
...boriginal Aleuts greatly reduced the number of sea otters starting about 2,500 years ago. By preying on sea urchins, sea otters prevented urchins from overgrazing the kelp forest. Hence, with fewer sea otters to control them, th...Across the countryside: How ecology predicts the movement of parasites and disease
...dy the role of infectious diseases on Southern sea otters (Enhydra lutris nereis). In their presentation, Good medicine for conservation biology: the intersection of epidemiology and conservation theory, Lafferty and Gerber will discuss the role disease plays in the health and size of the otters' overall p...Alaskan waters growing hospitable to sharks while seals and sea lions decline
...ska Fish and Game plane on an annual survey of sea otters estimates there are hundreds of fins in the small bay near Port Gravina, Prince William Sound. More sharks mass unseen below the surface. All are likely feasting on a run of salmon returning to spawn in nearby rivers and creeks. That aerial count w...People linked to new sea otter diseases
...e otter deaths and the researchers found that more otters died in years when the worm was common, suggesting... that uses sand crabs as an intermediate host. Sea otters usually don't catch it because they prefer molluscs and sea urchins. But people also like molluscs a...UC study links parasites in freshwater runoff to sea otter deaths
...cerned about the increasing number of southern sea otters dying in California. The current otter population ...ological data for 223 live and dead California sea otters tested between 1997 and 2001. Using a new diagnostic test developed by UC Davis scientists, the auth...Cat parasite killing otters; Michigan's perch pressured; HACCP for medicine
...the School of Veterinary Medicine, have shown that otters near heavy freshwater flows are three times more l...arasitic protozoan that causes brain infections in otters - than otters from areas where runoff is light. The scientists' best guess is that parasite eggs in...