Odder

Located in Monterey, California, the Monterey Bay Aquarium is a global leader in conservation programs. Its unique sea otter surrogacy program is the only one of its kind in the world and has been vital to sea otter population restoration efforts in Monterey Bay. The Sea Otter Program’s mission is to support sea otter population recovery, to rescue and reintroduce abandoned sea otter pups, and to raise public awareness of the sea otter’s importance in the ecosystem.

As a keystone species, sea otters are an essential part of maintaining the ecosystem in Monterey Bay. By preying on urchins and crabs, sea otters maintain the health of kelp forests and promote the growth of eelgrass. Sea otters are sometimes referred to as “ecosystem engineers,” meaning that their activities support their habitat’s health. Without a thriving sea otter population, California’s central coast is susceptible to weakened coastal integrity.

The aquarium’s sea otter surrogacy program has been instrumental in restoring the sea otter population of California’s central coast. Once hunted to near extinction, the population has bounced back in the last 15 years because of the program. It promotes population restoration by rescuing and reintroducing sea otters to coastal habitats to aid in coastal rehabilitation. While the program currently reintroduces the otters to the Elkhorn Slough area in Monterey Bay, the aquarists hope to eventually begin reintroducing otters in other coastal habitats nearby. Today, more than 50% of the otters in Elkhorn Slough are alumni or direct descendants of otters in the surrogacy program.

The surrogacy program uses rescued adult otters to rear abandoned pups and teach them survival skills before reintroducing them into the wild. Initially, the aquarists care for the rescued pup, disguising themselves by wearing ponchos and welder’s masks to prevent the pup from forming attachments to them. During this time, the aquarists perform the same duties a real otter mother would: They meticulously groom the pup, feed it, strengthen its jaws via chew toys, and then introduce it to the water and encourage it to dive. Once the pup is old enough to learn to swim, the aquarists pair it with one of the aquarium’s female otters, who takes over as its surrogate mother. The surrogate mother teaches the pup skills like deep diving, foraging, cracking open shells, and eating live prey. Once the aquarists deem the pup fit for survival, they reintroduce it to Elkhorn Slough.

Odder’s story in the novel is an amalgam of the experiences of real-life otters in the program. The events of Odder’s time as a pup reflect the real-life process at the aquarium. Odder’s shark attack storyline was inspired by an otter named Selka, and Odder’s story as a surrogate mother is based on an otter named Joy. In addition, Odder’s friend Kairi (Twyla) was inspired by the real-life story of Toola, the first successful surrogate mother in the program. The author draws on real-life details and facts to convey a realistic sense of the challenges facing sea otters, enabling readers to engage with the novel’s conservation themes in a more grounded way.