After I was reported for “aggressiveness” two years ago, state and Monterey Bay Aquarium officials yelled loudly at me to make me afraid of people. I was born in captivity and returned to the wild, with a number (841) and a transmitter for monitoring. So, don’t I have every reason to bite back? It’s the Human’s Fault There are only around 3,000 of us southern sea otters living off the California coast today because of mass slaughter by fur traders in previous centuries. Of course, deadly attacks on otters are a human tradition. Experts who study otters have raised the possibility that, if I’m ever accused of doing harm to a human, I’ll have to be euthanized - without a trial before a human jury, much less a panel of my fellow marine mammals.Īnd you thought Governor Newsom had put a moratorium on executions. California’s Plan For Me: Otter Injusticeīut it could get worse for me. The state’s plan is to capture me (they may have succeeded by the time you read this) and relocate me to a zoo or aquarium, placing me in front of audiences with little compensation-like actors in a Netflix show. Yet I, for spooking a few surfers, could lose my freedom. But c’mon! Human Californians can shoplift in Union Square and smoke meth in the Tenderloin without any real fear of imprisonment. Yes, I’ve bitten a few holes in some boards. Still, I’m being relentlessly hunted by state officials, as if I were a dangerous fugitive. She enjoys long swims on the beach, eating crabs, stealing surfboards and evading Fish and Wildlife.Īs of this writing, there are no confirmed cases of me hurting anyone. And I’m not just talking about the paparazzi who paddle out to take my photo.Īnother day another failed attempt to capture sea otter 841. Remove these parts of the fish, cook the fillet thoroughly and drain the juices to reduce your exposure to these harmful chemicals.The true aggressors in this otter’s story are all too human. Mercury may also be present in fish livers and other organs. Cook thoroughly and drain juices.įish skin, guts, livers and fat contain about half of the PCBs found in a whole fish. Follow gender and age-specific guidelines (PDF) issued by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) to limit consumption of these pollutants. If you eat fish, be sure to choose safer options for your gender and age to avoid unsafe levels of mercury and PCBs.Ĭertain types of fish contain high levels of mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which are pollutants found in San Francisco Bay (and many other water bodies) that can harm your health.

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