Dr. Melissa Miller has spent most of her career looking at sea otters. Well who wouldn't want that job? Except that she is a pathologist, and spends her day digging around inside the carcasses of dead sea otters to figure out what contributed to their demise.
She's a busy lady unfortunately. On average, 10% of the California sea otter population washes up dead on our state's beaches. That's an unsustainable number by anyone's definition, and especially when you consider that many of these animals are of an age considered to be the prime of their lives.
Dr. Miller's job is to put the pieces of the puzzle together and try to figure out not only how did this animal die, but how did it live. How it spent its time - where it foraged and what it fed on - may help us to understand why it succumbed to infectious disease, as over 40% of these animals do each year. Another statistic unheard of in a wild animal population.
Sometimes she gets a helping hand, when the animal is one that's been part of a study by the Aquarium's Sea Otter Research and Conservation program (SORAC). These animals may be tagged, or have radio transmitters. Chances are the SORAC staff can tell Dr. Miller a lot about the feeding preferences of these animals and their favorite hang outs.
Though the "death chart" shows that sea otters die from a myriad of causes, Dr. Miller's summation is simply "environmental degradation." A host of issues, thrown at one species and a daily struggle for survival in troubled waters. She thinks the resolution lies not in an attempt to solve each cause of mortality, but instead to step back and consider the bigger picture. Questions such as how should we properly dispose of our waste water - whether it's laden with chemicals, parasites, bacteria or animal waste. Issues such as restoring wetlands, natures natural filter system, that we have turned into salt mines or paved over.
Sea otters are clearly showing us that the sea is directly connected to the land, and what we do up here, directly impacts their food supply and environment. The food they eat, is the food we like to eat. Sea otters are demonstrating that the impacts of living and feeding in our nearshore coastal ecosystem can be fatal. For our sake, if not theirs, this is a clarion call we must heed.
Hear Dr. Miller in her own words, and check out "What's Killing California Sea Otters" to learn more about the threats they face and the work that California Department of Fish and Game is doing. As a state agency, this crucial work is greatly underfunded. The California Sea Otter Fund - a tax check-off option on California State Income Tax Returns - has helped to fund a staff member in Dr. Miller's office. Thanks to contributions from people like you, the Fund will continue for another year. Visit our website to learn more about how these contributions are being utilized.
I look forward to seeing your excellent articles more.
Posted by: F Horn | April 17, 2011 at 07:51 PM