Heartbreaking cries of mother otter who jumped on to boat to escape killer whales… and then realised she’d left baby to die
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This heart-wrenching video captures nature at its most raw.
Shot on the icy waters of Tutka Bay in Alaska, the footage shows the moment a mother sea otter leaps aboard a motorboat to escape the jaws of killer whales.
Seconds after the animal clambers onto the the safety of a platform at the back of the small vessel a huge killer whale can be seen bursting through the surface of the water in an attempt to eat the otter.
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A mother otter clambers aboard the platform of a motorboat as the white underside of a killer whale comes after her. She escapes, but unfortunately her baby was not so lucky
The boat provides respite for the frightened mother, but her baby is left with the near impossible challenge of fighting off the deadly attackers herself.
According to the film which has been posted on YouTube, the helpless baby is caught and eaten by one of the predators and the seemingly distraught mother is seen letting out high-pitched wails.
After the motorboat carries her away from the scene, the otter jumps back in the water and desperately tries to find her offspring but to no avail.
Sea otters, whose numbers were once estimated at 150,000–300,000, were hunted extensively for their fur between 1741 and 1911, and the world population fell to 1,000–2,000 individuals living in a fraction of their historic range.
A subsequent international ban on hunting, conservation efforts, and reintroduction programs into previously populated areas have contributed to numbers rebounding, and the species now occupies about two-thirds of its former range.
The worried sea otter mother looks directly at the camera as she perches aboard the platform at the back of the motorboat
The killer whales circle the boat as they try to hunt down the otter and her baby
The sea otter screams in either pain or in a desperate attempt to be reunited with her baby
The recovery of the sea otter is considered an important success in marine conservation, although populations in the Aleutian Islands and California have recently declined or have plateaued at depressed levels. For these reasons, the sea otter remains classified as an endangered species.
Sea otters in Alaska are nursed for between four and 12 months, with the mother beginning to offer bits of prey at one to two months.
The milk from a sea otter's two abdominal nipples is rich in fat and more similar to the milk of other marine mammals than to that of other mustelids.
After being taken to safety the otter dives back in the water and continues to call out to her offspring, but to no avail
A pup, with guidance from its mother, practices swimming and diving for several weeks before it is able to reach the sea floor. Initially, the objects it retrieves are of little food value, such as brightly colored starfish and pebbles.
Juveniles are typically independent at six to eight months, but a mother may be forced to abandon a pup if she cannot find enough food for it; at the other extreme, a pup may nurse until it is almost adult size.
Pup mortality is high, particularly during an individual's first winter – by one estimate, only 25% of pups survive their first year. Pups born to experienced mothers have the highest survival rates.
Replies
A couple of things....
Dear Krishna, your heart is broad and open for our planet life, and the loss of any life disturbs you greatly. As when we feel we lose part of our heart when someone we love passes to another plane, you feel the loss of our mother earth's children. I feel pain when I see mother earth torn and ravaged by human hands, but when the universal laws of space implosion throws our home into havoc, I feel it as natural law.
The whales too must eat or starve. The sea is their dinner table. They have babies too who must be fed and nurtured.
How wonderful that mama otter trusted us to help her rather than running in blind fear.
It was a privilege to see mother earth's children so closely, thank you for sharing.
Remember the cycle of life here depends on one species supporting another through their bodies. It is a harsh reality for us to watch, but how wonderful that we have the ability to feel their soul presence.
Many blessings to you Krishna, may love be with you.
This has nothing to do with spirituality, keep on topic.
AGAIn, this will be the sounds you hear fromhuman mothers when you put their children in the zoo for swearing, or eating a cheeseburger
LOL, sorry it hit me as funny....sometimes I guess it is easier to have compassion for an animal than a human for some people. I think compassion for fellow humans and tolerance is something we should strive for don't you KK?
OH GOD THE MOTHERS CRIES ...seem like can be heard all over the Universe.. what can sooth her grieving heart...God please console her don't leave her in this way
I watched the video once but cannot watch it again ...it hurts my heart too much to see the mother cry out in pain
Any mothers heartbroken in pain is hard to bear for all..IT IS EXTREMELY SORROWFUL
The people on the boat should have helped her more i think
my heart is in pain