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The California Sea Otter Population (Enhydra lutris ) 



Because of its small size and limited distribution, the 

 remnant sea otter population in California is vulnerable to 

 oil spills or other catastrophic events and, for this 

 reason, was designated "threatened" under the Endangered 

 Species Act in January 1977. The most logical way of 

 reducing the severity of the impact of such threats to the 

 population is by establishing one or more sea otter colonies 

 outside the population's present range. While such an 

 action could adversely affect commercial and recreational 

 fisheries for abalone, clams, and other invertebrate species 

 eaten by sea otters, it could also reduce populations of sea 

 urchins and other herbivores which sea otters eat, and thus 

 enhance the growth of kelp, a product of commercial significance 

 which also provides habitat for certain species of finfish 

 of recreational and commercial importance. 



To facilitate protection and recovery of the California 

 sea otter population, while minimizing possible adverse 

 effects on commercial and recreational fisheries, the 

 Commission, in December 1980, recommended that the Fish and 

 Wildlife Service adopt and implement a management strategy 

 recognizing the ultimate need for "zonal" management of sea 

 otters and the need to establish one or more sea otter 

 colonies at a site or sites not likely to be affected by an 

 oil spill in or near the population's present range. The 

 Fish and Wildlife Service concurred with the Commission's 

 recommendation and incorporated the zonal management concept 

 into the Southern Sea Otter Recovery Plan, which it adopted 

 in February 1982. 



Past Commission efforts to facilitate development and 

 implementation of an effective sea otter recovery plan are 

 described in previous Annual Reports. The Commission's 

 activities in this regard in 1983 are summarized below. 



Five-Year Status Review 



The Endangered Species Act, as amended, requires that 

 the Fish and Wildlife Service review the status of all 

 species designated either "threatened" or "endangered" at 

 least once every five years. In partial fulfillment of this 

 responsibility, the Service, as noted in the Commission's 

 previous Annual Report, published a Federal Register notice 

 on 27 September 1982 requesting information on the status of 

 the southern sea otter population and a number of other 

 listed species. In addition, the Service and the California 

 Department of Fish and Game jointly conducted a population 

 count in November 1982. 



