Sea otters are slowing down the erosion of salt marshes, thanks to their rapacious appetite for crabs, according to new research. But it took some sleuthing to figure this out. Marine ecologist Brent Hughes said he and his colleagues first noticed sea otters (Enhydra lutris) using the tidal creeks and salt marshes of Elkhorn... read full story
"This presented a really unique opportunity to study the effects of a recovering top predator on a salt marsh ecosystem that was under a lot of [stress due to] anthropogenic effects and negative effects,"