US Migrating
type: Agent

Digital Data
type: Distribution
access URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F7FJ2DWJ
media type: application/http
description: Landing page for access to the data
format: XML
issued: 2022-08-07T08:44:02.967583
modified: 2025-11-20T09:53:41.978966

Original Metadata
type: Distribution
access URL: https://data.usgs.gov/datacatalog/metadata/USGS.57a3513ee4b006cb45567d47.xml
media type: text/xml
description: The metadata original format
format: XML
issued: 2022-08-07T08:44:02.967576
modified: 2025-11-20T09:53:41.978559

Range Extent for southern sea otters 2016
type: Dataset
contact point: Organization
  fn: M. Tim Tinker
keyword: aerial-counts
keyword: geo
keyword: southern-california-coast
keyword: sea-otter-census
keyword: amerigeo
keyword: national
keyword: ckan
keyword: california
keyword: sea-otters
keyword: usgs-57a3513ee4b006cb45567d47
keyword: oceans
keyword: united-states
keyword: environment
keyword: north-america
keyword: coast
keyword: central-california-coast
keyword: biota
keyword: distribution
keyword: amerigeoss
keyword: geoss
keyword: range
keyword: shore-counts
theme: {geospatial}
description: The GIS shapefile "Range extent of southern sea otters 2016" is a simple polyline representing the geographic distribution of the southern sea otter (Enhydra lutris nereis) in mainland California, based on data collected during the spring 2016 range-wide census. The USGS range-wide sea otter census has been undertaken twice a year since 1982, once in May and once in October, using consistent methodology involving both ground-based and aerial-based counts. The spring census is considered more accurate than the fall count, and provides the primary basis for gauging population trends by State and Federal management agencies. Sea otter distribution in California (the mainland range) is considered to comprise a band of potential habitat stretching along the coast of California, and bounded to the north and south by range limits defined as "the points farthest from the range center at which 5 or more otters are counted within a 10km contiguous stretch of coastline (as measured along the 10m bathymetric contour) during the two most recent spring censuses, or at which these same criteria were met in the previous year".
issued: 2025-11-20T09:53:41.990773
modified: 20200827
spatial: Location