Investigators are looking for the person or people who shot and killed three sea otters in Santa Cruz County, officials announced Monday.
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“It’s rare because sea otters aren’t a species that’s hunted, or there’s no commercialization of sea otters because they are protected animal, both federally and state protected and they are generally not killed by people with guns”, Schad said. They are also protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act and by California state law.
Those found responsible for the death of a Southern sea otter can face a maximum fine of $100,000 and possible jail time, according to wildlife officials.
Southern sea otters are also known as California sea otters and are known to navigate the waters between San Mateo and Santa Barbara counties and the area around San Nicolas Island in Ventura County. Initial necropolis results found that the otters sustained gunshot wounds and died several days to several weeks before washing ashore. At present, there are over 106,000 sea otters worldwide, with just more or less 3,000 in California.
A sea otter surfaces for a look at the shoreline in the harbor at Moss Landing.
Niswonger, who was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Jose, did not hit the animal or harm it. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Forensics Laboratory is conducting a thorough examination to aid in the investigation.
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Per the statement, the reward money is being put up by the Monterey Bay Aquarium, CDFW and a private donor. Contact him at 408-920-5045.
