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Science 20 September 1974:
Vol. 185. no. 4156, pp. 1058 - 1060
DOI: 10.1126/science.185.4156.1058
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Articles

Sea Otters: Their Role in Structuring Nearshore Communities

James A. Estes 1 and John F. Palmisano 2

1 Arizona Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit, University of Arizona, Tucson 85721
2 College of Fisheries, University of Washington, Seattle 98195

A comparison of western Aleutian Islands with and without sea otter populations shows that this species is important in determining littoral and sublittoral community structure. Sea otters control herbivorous invertebrate populations. Removal of sea otters causes increased herbivory and ultimately results in the destruction of macrophyte associations. The observations suggest that sea otter reestablishment indirectly affects island fauna associated with macrophyte primary productivity.


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