It's Sea Otter Awareness Week

And we "otter" save them.

....Current Santa Barbara City Councilman Das Williams said it best… “I say we should embrace the economic and environmental opportunities presented by the otter’s return. They will eat a lot of urchins, and that will impact that fishery, but urchins have decimated kelp forests and the otter’s return may increase the size of kelp forests which also increase the number of other fish species that people once fished in decent numbers. The economic benefit of otters on a town like Monterrey is also very significant financially. Besides, their impact to the urchin fishery may not be devastating in the near term because it is largely males heading south during the female’s season to raise pups, an adaptation to prevent the males competing with the pups for food, so it is for now seasonal trips into our waters.” - Santa Barbara View

We "Otter" Save Them

Sea Otter preening itself in Morro Bay, CA sea-otter-morro-bay_13
Originally uploaded by mikebaird.

There are some folks in town who want to rid the Santa Barbara area of Sea Otters. I think that is a foolish and knee jerk reaction to a "perceived" problem. I think that looking at the "big picture" should be the plan...and so does Das.

....Current Santa Barbara City Councilman Das Williams said it best… “I say we should embrace the economic and environmental opportunities presented by the otter’s return. They will eat a lot of urchins, and that will impact that fishery, but urchins have decimated kelp forests and the otter’s return may increase the size of kelp forests which also increase the number of other fish species that people once fished in decent numbers. The economic benefit of otters on a town like Monterrey is also very significant financially. Besides, their impact to the urchin fishery may not be devastating in the near term because it is largely males heading south during the female’s season to raise pups, an adaptation to prevent the males competing with the pups for food, so it is for now seasonal trips into our waters.” - Santa Barbara View