How Oil Spills Affect Otters and Their Personal Health

How Oil Spills Affect Otters and Their Personal Health

The reason why so many sea otters get killed in oil spills is because they depend on their fur for warmth, and when their fur is introduced to oil, it gets matted and stops them from producing heat, therefore killing them in the process

They’re also more vulnerable to the effect of an oil spill than any other type of marine mammal.

We are now more understanding to the exposure and effects on their health of these amazing mammals. :) 

This is a link to an article addressing the health effects of oil when sea otters fur comes in contact with it

https://seaotters.com/2012/06/sea-otters-and-oil-avenues-of-exposure-and-health-effects/

The Exxon Valdez was not one of the biggest but it was one of the deadliest oil spills in history. it happened in 1989 and killed thousands of otters.


Experts at the rescue center believe that only about 10% of the injured otters have been found by rescue teams and brought in for treatment

In total about three or two sea otters visit an animal clinic centre each day to get treated. Most of them survive but sadly some don’t :(

Here's another link about sea otters to do with oil spills, especially about the Exxon Valdez

https://www.nytimes.com/1989/04/25/science/oil-slick-is-poisoning-sea-otters-as-well-as-freezing-them.html

This is a video telling about Olive the sea otter that got coated in oil.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_hG_g3dEqc



Olive The Otter (based on a true story)

It was a cold misty morning when the Exxon Valdez was carrying some oil across the ocean. It was close to being frozen but that didn’t stop them from carrying on with their duties. They were committed workers. One of them whose name so happened to be Joseph Jeffrey Hazelwood (yes, that was his actual name) was rushing outside because it was his turn to steer the wheel. It had been left unattended. A rope (who knows what it was doing there) happened to be lying on the ground and tripped Joseph over and sent him flying into a pile of barrels. While doing so, one of the barrels crashed into the side of the ship and made a crack which soon evolved into a hole. Oil started gushing out of the ship and turning the water black and shiny. Oil here, oil there, oil EVERYWHERE! At the time of this horrible event, Olive the otter was cruising on the waves when she came across the horrid ship that had caused the oil spill. Distracted by the beautiful swirls the oil made in the salty water, she swam closer and closer, until she realized that she was swimming in a pile of muck. Now poor Olive was drenched in sticky, mucky, oil. Her coat was now ruined! She found it quite hard to believe that she had an actual encounter with an oil spill. Her parents always warned her not to swim on the surface for too long, and to swim away if she sees a ship, because there’s a good chance that ship is carrying oil, and if you come in contact with the oil then you suffer in pain! Olive always thought her parents were being a bit too dramatic, but little did she know, they were very much right, and she was slowly dying…


The next day some explorers were cruising on a small boat when they happened to run into a current which started pulling them the wrong way. While they were panicking one of the explores saw Olive drifting past and jumped into the water to help the poor otter. A few minutes later they were back at the rescue shelter soaking wet, drenching the carpet as they made their way to the front desk. Here they all were, shivering in front of the emergency rooms as one of the guys dashed right in, carrying poor Olive in his unsteady hands. They carefully carried her into the room where the vets would soon be operating on her. Little did she know, her life was about to turn upside down...