Watch a sea otter pup reunite with its mother

When a roughly 2-week-old sea otter pup recently stranded on the beach at Morro Bay, our rescue team jumped into action.  

Our response teams received a call about a sea otter pup crying out in distress in Morro Bay.  The young sea otter, roughly 2-weeks-old, was in a precarious situation without its mother. We needed to act quickly.

Our response team secured the pup, later nicknamed Caterpillar, in a protected container to prevent overheating.  In an attempt to locate the mother, we recorded the pups distressed calls and broadcasted them over speaker while moving through the water on boat.

After two hours of searching, a female otter repeatedly surfaced near the boat, following the pups calls.  When our experts finally lowered Caterpillar into the water, the female otter swam directly to the pup. The young otter floated on its back as the mother gathered it into her arms, inspecting the fur and holding the pup close. 

Our team monitored the pair for another hour to ensure they were stable. Special thank you to our friends at Morro Bay Harbor Department for assisting us with this rescue.

At about 4 or 5 years old, female sea otters typically have their first pup after a four-to-five-month-long pregnancy. Females can give birth any time of the year, but most in California have their pup between January and March.

Newborn sea otters weigh 3 to 5 pounds. A sea otter pup’s fur traps so much air that they cannot dive underwater. When a mother leaves to go hunt for food, she will wrap her baby in kelp, leaving it to bob on the surface of the ocean like a cork. Mothers spend much of their time grooming their pups and are often observed carrying them on their chest.

Sea otter pups begin to learn to swim at around 4 weeks old. After about eight months staying alongside their mothers, pups are weaned and on their own.

As a keystone species, sea otters play a vital role in restoring marine ecosystems and strengthening our natural defenses against climate change. 

Learn more about how sea otters can help save the planet.