The recovery of sea otter populations in the second half of the twentieth century, following their protection under international agreements, has been one of the more dramatic ecological success stories of the Pacific coast, with sea otter populations reestablishing in many parts of their former range and kelp forest ecosystems recovering.

For the ancient coastal peoples who had lived with sea otters for thousands of years — who had hunted them as a food resource while also depending on the ecological services they provided — the fur trade elimination of the species represented an ecological as well as a cultural disruption.

The recovery of sea otter populations in recent decades is, in this sense, a partial restoration of the ecological context within which the Northwest Coast peoples had developed their maritime traditions.

The Question of Watercraft