Paul Chinn / The Chronicle
A traffic sign warn drivers to be cautious of river otters crossing Lucky Drive in Larkspur, a popular spot for the mammals.
Posted on 04/15/2012 9:54:28 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
It's wild times in the watershed.
The most happy-go-lucky denizen of Bay Area creeks is back, after a hiatus of at least three decades: the river otter.
"They look like they're having a wonderful time out there. It's really exciting to see," said Steve Bobzien, a wildlife ecologist for the East Bay Regional Park District. "Plus, it's a really good biological indicator of the health of the ecosystem."
From Antioch to Tomales Bay, park visitors have reported otters rolling in mud, gnawing on crayfish, sliding down rocks and generally partying on the creek banks. A Marin group has even created an Otter Spotter website, where the public can log their otter sightings on an interactive map and learn more about the charismatic carnivores.
"The more we look for otters, the more we find. It seems like they're everywhere," said Megan Isadore, a naturalist from Forest Knoll who started the River Otter Ecology Project and Otter Spotter website. "It's wonderful - everyone loves otters."
Otters were once found in almost every creek and lake in Northern California, but their numbers seriously dwindled until the 1970s because of hunting, habitat loss and pollution. Particularly harmful was mercury, which seeped into the crayfish, clams, mussels and other shellfish that otters dine on.
But the federal Clean Water Act of 1972, California environmental laws, antihunting regulations and open space preservation have helped make the waterways more hospitable for otters. They're still threatened, but they appear to be rebounding, biologists said.
...
Marin seems to have the biggest concentration of otters, and the population there appears to have skirted the worst of the hunting and pollution impacts. Otters are in virtually every creek and reservoir but especially seem to favor water treatment plants and anyplace with lots of salmon, ..
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
A traffic sign warn drivers to be cautious of river otters crossing Lucky Drive in Larkspur, a popular spot for the mammals.
Seriously nasty slimy critters in the weasel, wolverine and mink family but everyone likes them.
I grew up in a the middle of muskrats, weasels, beaver and mink.. and Minnesoda gophers. My neighbor was a trapper and a good one.. the littler they are, the more vicious.. except for badgers and wolverines.
In 5 years you’ll be up to your bung holes in otters. Kind of like those cute cuddly sea lions at Fishermans Wharf.
one of SF’s most touristy scene.. seals by the raftfull.. that and homeless and the local performing artistas.. and whales now of late..
we’re in the south bay hillsy area, no creeks nearby, we get or used to get the raccoons families grabbing fruit and swimming in the pool and occasional opossum.
You can bet your bottom dollar that if this article was about a declining otter population, they’d quote some “scientist” blaming global warming.
But as we’re talking about an increasing population of cuddly little animals, “global warming” shall not be given any mention as a possible cause.
They don't make Mercury thermometers any more.....just billions and billions of mercury laden lightbulbs.
Since the otters were declared a protected class along the California coast, shell fish have become an unofficial endangered class. These otters, which most of us find to be cute and interesting to watch, have voracious appetites for shell fish. Just ask any scuba diver about what has happened to the shell fish population along the California coast.
Wait till they find out these little bastards vote republican.
“Just ask any scuba diver about what has happened to the shell fish population along the California coast.”
Poaching and overharvesting have something to do with this as well. Otters may have voracious appitites, but people are voracious as well. I also believe that the shellfish decline preceeded the rebound of the sea otter population (not that they don’t have an impact).
I like river otters.
Idaho Gov. Butch Otter
Sounds like any Summer Weekend on the Russian River.
Are both ocean and non-oceanic waters friendly to otters?
If so, I wonder if my friends in Marin county - with a home with a back yard that borders on an estuary that is primarily fed by creeks but mixed with the waters of the bay at high-tide - are now spotting otters making their way up from the water-side to their back door? (their land is just barely above sea level).
wouldn’t surprise me,, sounds like they move around pretty quick regardless
; )
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