Mother's Day

Hans

@hans1671102377 · 09 May 2021

Mother's Day

Overseas otter mother and young, Monterey Bay, California, U.S..
We're in Monterey Bay, California, where a sea otter mother gives her three-day-old puppy a place to cuddle and gives us a very cute picture. The puppies are completely dependent for about six months, so mom will wear them on her stomach as you see here. When the little one goes into the water alone, mom rubs the puppy to fluff his fur, causing the fur to hold air bubbles, isolating it from cold water and letting the young float like a cork.

That coat is remarkable — it's supposed to be the thickest of any mammal on Earth, with about 100,000-400,000 hairs per square inch. After about four weeks, sea otter pups start swimming and eating alone — after six weeks they start diving alone. Until then, Mom keeps them close. When she has to leave a puppy in search of food, she sometimes wraps the little one in kelp, preventing him from wandering away while looking for food.