Annual California Sea Otter Census: 2018 Range Extent Shapefile

Publication Date

2018-09-24

Start Date

2018-04-26

End Date

2018-05-24

Hatfield, B.B., Yee, J.L., Kenner, M.C., Tomoleoni, J.A., and Tinker, M.T., 2018, Annual California sea otter census—2018 spring census summary: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P98012HE.

The range-wide census is conducted to monitor trends in abundance of the southern sea otter, and thus provide State and Federal resource agencies with the information they need for effective management. Because the censuses represent uncorrected total counts (rather than sample-based surveys), they cannot be considered as accurate estimates of true population abundance. Instead, these data represent a valuable time-series of index counts, and provide the means of assessing spatial and temporal trends in relative abundance and distribution. The range extent GIS layer is useful for evaluating the range expansion of the sea otter population over time, and for identifying areas where significant sea otter impacts on near-shore marine communities are likely to occur.

ScienceBase WMS

ScienceBase WFS

• USGS Western Ecological Research Center

Data source

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