It's hard to take your eyes off of a picture of a sea otter. Even the hardest heart can be moved by the sight of the furry creature that inhabits kelp forests in salt water. Except in Oregon, that is; sea otters were trapped and hunted to extinction for their luxurious fur, and an attempt to reestablish a population on the Oregon coast failed in the early 1970s.
The current issue of the Oregon Historical Quarterly gives some extra space to Oregon sea otters, explaining their importance to the longtime residents of the area, and the impunity European visitors showed in wiping out the otter population in the centuries that followed.
We talk about otters past, and--possibly--future with three of the contributors to the Quarterly. Peter (Black Bear) Hatch is History & Archaeology Specialist for the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, Doug Duer is researcher at Portland State University, and Cameron LaFollette is Executive Director of the Oregon Coast Alliance.