Picture of a sea otter diving beneath a wave with sea weed in the foreground.

Sea otters are rebounding from near extinction. Not everyone is happy.

How can these voracious mammals be reintegrated into a world that changed while they were gone?

At once calm and agile beneath rough surf, a young sea otter glides through California’s Monterey Bay, looking for mussels. The diving power of these mammals suits their enormous appetites; while foraging underwater, they typically find food in a minute or two.
Photograph by Ralph Pace
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