Surviving on the Island: Chapter 24

Sea otter with twin pups. Michael L. Baird [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

Karana’s birds, Tainor and Lurai, build a nest, hatch eggs, and give birth to two birds that she tames. Karana then finds a young gull with a broken leg that she brings home to nurse back to health.

When out gathering abalone in her canoe, Karana sees the otter she hand-fed. The otter takes a fish from Karana and later brings two young otters near her canoe. Karana gives the otters fish to eat and realizes that Mon-a-nee is not a male otter, but the mother to the two young otters.

Karana enjoys watching her animal friends and decides that she will never hunt to kill again.

Fact Check: Sea Otters

Do mother sea otters care for their young for an extended period of time? 

What do we know?
Female sea otters care extensively for their young. Sea otter pups are dependent on their mothers for food, grooming, and protection especially when they are young. Pups remain dependent on their mothers for an average of six months. 

What is the evidence?
Secondary source: Dr. Marianne Riedman, director of the sea otter research program at Monterey Bay Aquarium, and Dr. James Estes, professor of ecology and environmental biology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, describe sea otter behavior in a research paper. 

Voices from the Field

Dr. Sara Schwebel, professor of English, University of South Carolina, and editor of Island of the Blue Dolphins: The Complete Reader’s Edition (University of California Press, 2016), discusses Karana’s decision to never kill another animal to make clothing or tools. 

Photos & Multimedia

Video: Why Sea Otters Hold Hands & Wrap Pups in Seaweed (3:08)
Video: Sea Otter Orphan Gets Adopted (3:27)

Teacher Resources

Writing Prompts and Lesson Plans