Kids Stand Up for Sea Otters - Defenders Announces Sea Otter Essay Contest

Defenders of Wildlife
Friday, 18 January 2002

Students in grades 6 through 8 will get a chance to do something positive for the threatened California sea otter in an essay contest announced today by Defenders of Wildlife. Writing on the topic "Why the Sea Otter is Important to California," student essayists will compete for first, second and third place prizes of $1,000, $500, and $250 savings bonds. Defenders has also developed new sea otter lesson plans that are available free to teachers, to compliment this initiative.

"This essay contest will really help to raise middle school students' awareness about this important animal and how the sea otter impacts other species in the ecosystem off California's coast," said Jim Curland, a Marine Associate with Defenders of Wildlife's Monterey office.

Once abundant in California with a population between 16,000 and 20,000, the sea otter is now a threatened species facing continued threats to its existence including disease, entrapment in fishing gear, and loss of habitat. Roughly 2,000 sea otters remain and are essential to the health of nearshore marine ecosystems off California. As a keystone species, sea otters play an essential role in the balance of these systems, contributing to the viability of a host of other species.

In addition to prizes, winning essays will be posted on the Defenders of Wildlife Web site, and at the Carnivores 2002 conference to be held next November in Monterey, California.

The sea otter school lesson plans are designed for students in grades 6-8 and conform to California, Washington and Oregon standards. The lessons include both individual and group learning activities and are designed to integrate reading, writing, social studies and technology into the science curriculum.

This sea otter teaching unit is available free of charge to all teachers and can be found on Defenders of Wildlife's Web site for kids and teachers, Kids' Planet, under the "Teacher's Table" link. Defenders of Wildlife also offers one hour classroom presentations on sea otter conservation and natural history; if interested, please contact Jim Curland at jcurland@defenders.org.

For more information, or to contact Defenders of Wildlife, see their website at: www.defenders.org