Bad otter mom or... ?

[NorthernFocus]

While out on the water a couple of weeks ago we witnessed an otter behave like we'd never seen before in 12 boating seasons in Alaska. In a previous thread some time ago I explained that baby otters can't dive under water. Their fur holds air and they are so buoyant that the only way then can go under is for the mom to hold them against her chest and dive with them. Which is exactly what they do to escape danger.

The mom and pup otter pictured below allowed us to get fairly close as you can tell by the photo. But as I was shooting the mother suddenly seemed to panic and dove. But she left the baby on the surface! I've seen hundreds of mothers with babies aboard and have never seen one dive without carrying the pup under with them. The baby immediately began to cry sounding disturbingly similar to a human infant. We fired up the engine and put distance between us and them as quickly as possible. When the mom surfaced she was probably 20 yards or so away and swam back to the pup on the surface.

I've puzzled over this since it occurred. From all my MANY hours observing them, otters appear to be excellent and very protective mothers. So this one was a mystery. Ok there's bound to be a bad one out of a thousand I guess. But then tonight I was editing photos and noticed something about the mom. Also in a previous thread I think I've mentioned that female otters can be distinguished by pink scars on the nose that are artifacts of mating behavior (the male bites the female on the nose to stay coupled). But in the photo below notice the mom has no scar. I have to admit to cloning the scars if they are too large/brite. But in this case that's not been done.

So my theory for the odd behavior is that this "mom" isn't the baby's biological mother. I believe it may be a young female that adopted an orphaned pup. That could explain the odd behavior in her being willing to abandon the baby on the surface. Whereas she had enough instinctive behavior to adopt the pup, maybe without the genetic link the instinct wasn't strong enough for her to risk her own life to protect it. It is a fairly old pup so may be weaned which would make the foster parenting possible without suckling. Then again, maybe she's just a bad mom who also somehow managed not to get her nose nipped by her lover Any animal psychologists out there who'd like to weigh in?

One thing for sure is that when that little one started crying like a human child it raised the hair on my neck. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. I try my best not to disturb critters while shooting much less little ones that cry like they're human

[ShaneS]

That is a lovely image Dan and a very interesting story to go with it. Your respect for the animals is very impressive too and something that you should be very proud of. Many would have stayed or even inched closer to capture 'THE' shot.

The mother otter does look a bit spooked (maybe just hyper alert) and very protective of her charge who looks rather plaintive.

Thank you so much for sharing your amazing images and stories from your part of the world. As you may have figured by now I am not a big wildlife photographer but often stop by to enjoy your great images. I don't often comment as I feel I don't have a lot of feedback to give you and would start to sound very repetitive with great shot, amazing shots, wow etc!

[Kodiak]

While out on the water

I will not comment on this!

…simply because I'M MUCH TOO BIASED! With the bears, my fav mammals.
Dan, you can't shoot enough of those… I love them!

[Nicks Pics]

Despite this unusual instance, you mentioned, your otter pictures are very cute showing how they are holding one another etc., including the one you posted here. Otters may have different family styles, but in beavers, so Iv'e read, the young stick around for a while and help take care of the fallowing year's pups. Maybe if it was a big sibling it did not take it's job quite so seriously? Though I am not a wildlife psychologists (that would be an interesting job?)

[IzzieK]

I hope Jack will see this post, Dan...he seems to know a lot about animal behaviors than I think he does ... I can see what you are trying to say here and yes, it seems odd that the mom would leave her child.

It would break my heart just to hear the pup cries like a baby. I am glad you have the sense to move further to give the mom the chance to get back to her young. That is most honorable of you to do so...I hope most wildlife photographers are like you.

[Shadowman]

Nice capture and scenario.

[Mike Buckley]

Great photo! Fabulous narrative!

[NorthernFocus]

Thanks for all of the comments, folks. Well it appears that I completely misread the situation. It seems what we witnessed was very typical behavior and that the mom was so unconcerned with the presence of the boat that it simply continued feeding in our presence. That could also explain why she surfaced so far from the pup. Following are a couple of quotes that I found via Google:

...Much has been written about the level of devotion of sea otter mothers for their pups – a mother gives her infant almost constant attention, cradling it on her chest away from the cold water and attentively grooming its fur.[76] When foraging, she leaves her pup floating on the water, sometimes wrapped in kelp to keep it from floating away;[77] if the pup is not sleeping, it cries loudly until she returns...

...A pup can be heard squealing when its mother leaves it to dive for food and often times when a male approaches...

This actually makes more sense as the mom wasn't showing any signs of distress and then suddenly dove leaving the pup floating. Well I feel better in that we apparently didn't put stress on the female otter. Though I suppose our presence may have contributed to how vocal the pup was being. It is hard to believe with all the time we've spent observing these guys that we've never seen this before. Oh well, live and learn.

[Mike Buckley]

Terrific follow-up!

[Brownbear]

Absolutely beautiful! Your image and the story. I adore your images of otters and your commentary and so helpful.

[terrib]

Dan, that is one beautiful shot. The interaction between the two and their eye contact with you really makes it special. I so enjoy reading your observations from the field. Being observant and learning about your subject are what takes your photos to a higher level. Thanks for sharing that with us!

[NorthernFocus]

Thanks, guys. In all fairness my motives for avoiding disturbing wildlife are not totally altruistic. From a practical standpoint it makes for much better photos when wildlife is simply going about its business. Better for them and better photography IMO. Had I understood what was going on in this case I'd have stayed put in hopes of some good feeding behavior shots. Those shots are hard to come by due to the unpredictability of where the otter will surface after a dive. In this case the pup would have provided a predictable focal point around which the mom would feed. But I am growing soft with age and I'm not sure I could have endured the wailing of the pup. It is truly a pitiful sound.

[MarieV]

Such a stunning image and thank you for introducing me to the world of otters.

[bnnrcn]

Super image Dan I'm glad that you didn't scare the baby

[FootLoose]

Beautiful shot, Dan, the paw around the young one's neck is wonderful expression of affection - if I am not anthropomorphising.

Regarding the mother's behaviour: perhaps after all your years out on the water photographing them, they have become accustomed you. Parent's tell their young not to be afraid of the thing with the one big eye on the front of its head.