Sea otters are excellent parents, friends to their ecosystems, and just generally adorable, so why anyone would want to shoot one is rather confounding.
Sea otters are excellent parents, friends to their ecosystems, and just generally adorable, so why anyone would want to shoot one is rather confounding.
Nonetheless, in August, three of the animals washed up on the shores of southern California.
All showed evidence of being struck by gunfire, and it is believed that is what caused their deaths.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife have banded together to investigate.
They are also giving at least $10,000 in exchange for information leading to the capture of the person or persons responsible for the deaths.
Otters are classified as threatened and as such are protected by law.
People who kill them are subject to a fine of $100,000 and time behind bars.