Monterey Boaters & Fisherman Warned To Look Out For Vulnerable Sea Otters

MONTEREY BAY (KCBS)— Fisherman and boaters going in and out of Monterey Bay are being warned to be on the lookout for sea otters that may be hunting at the start of salmon season. With a lot more traffic on the Bay, the concern is sea otters could get run over.

35 sea otters have been killed in the last decade according to Jim Curland, advocacy program director of Friends of the Sea Otter.

"The reason for the campaign is that with the opening of salmon season there's a tendency to be excited to get out into the open ocean. We're just saying there's no wake zone in the Moss Landing Harbor and Elkhorn Slough area," Curland said.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium is also part of the awareness campaign.

"They're very vulnerable to natural disasters, oil spills, and also human made ones like boat strikes. We're trying to do what we can to protect this less than 3,000 sea otters that do live along the coast here," said aquarium spokesman Hank Armstrong.

Recreational salmon season ends on April 30th.