Enhydra lutris
| Sea Otter |
|---|
|
| Scientific Classification |
| Binomial Name |
Enhydra lutris |
Sea otters are mammals that belong to the Mustelidae family along with weasles, badgers, and skunks. They are the only species of the genus Enhydra, however, there are three sub-species that can be distinguished by their fur color, and body size.
These are the largest living member of the family Mustelidae, with the males weighing 22 to 45 kg, and the females 14 to 22 kg. The males are usually 1.2 to 1.5 m long while the females generally range from 1 to 1.4 m. their tail is generally less than 1/3 of their body length. Sea otter fur is the densest of all mammals, they have about 100,000 hairs per square centimeter. Their fur is generally brown or reddish brown and since they have no insulating fat, their fur has to give them body heat. Their back legs are long and the paws are broad, flat, and webbed.
Sea otters reproduce sexually and are able to have offspring all year round. The main months of birth are from May to June in the Aleutian Islands and January through March in the California population. Delayed implantation produces varied gestation times. Pregnancy has been reported between 4 and 12 months long. On average females give birth once a year. Orientation of the fetus may be either caudal or cephalic, although cephalic orientation is more common near birth. Usually a single pup is born weighing from 1.4 to 2.3 kg. Twins are rare, occurring in 2% of births but only one pup can be raised successfully. Pups typically remain with their mother for 5 to 6 months after birth. Females that lose a pup will go into estrus sooner than if their pup had survived. Females reach sexual maturity at 4 years. Males reach sexual maturity at 5 to 6 years of age, but might not reproduce until much later.
|
||||||||||||||||||||
