A Rogue Santa Cruz Otter Is Terrorizing Surfers: The Redux

A rogue Santa Cruz otter is terrorizing surfers: The redux

LOS ANGELES — It’s been two years since a Santa Cruz sea otter, known as 841, garnered international attention and celebrity by attacking surfers and their surfboards as the human wave-riders alley-ooped over the waves of the legendary Steamer...

Sea Otters Challenge Surfers for Supremacy at Santa Cruz, California's Steamer Lane Beach

By Mike Hunt Recent encounters between southern sea otters and surfers at Steamer Lane, a renowned surf spot along West Cliff Drive in Santa Cruz, have prompted safety advisories from local authorities, echoing incidents from two years prior involving a notorious otter known as 841. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the Santa Cruz Fire Department reported multiple...

Cele|bitchy | Sea otters are stealing surfboards in California, officials warn surfers to stay away

Everyone knows that sea otters aren’t into surfing. That’s like, Marine Biology 101. They’re floaters, flippers, and swimmers, not surfers. This was why a frisky devil named Otter 841 intrigued the residents of Santa Cruz (and beyond!) in 2023 when she enacted a campaign of biting and commandeering the longboards of humans. (Sidenote: I still cannot get on board (surf pun!) with no-name number-only animals. I understand the logic of why they’re …