Interdisciplinary research is needed to study the effects of sea otters on Southeast Alaska social-ecological systems, while recognizing the complex relationship between humans and their environment. The successful reintroduction and population expansion of sea otters to Southeast Alaska following their extirpation during the 19th century fur trade provides a unique opportunity to study a complex resource conflict. The return of sea otters to Southeast Alaska has had mixed reviews. On one hand, the return of sea otters to this region is a classic example of one of the most successful reintroductions of a top predator to its historical range. While on the other hand, sea otters are negatively impacting commercial, sport and subsistence shellfish fisheries. How do we balance and address various competing societal values? Are there knowledge systems that may provide insight to how this was done in the past?Can some communities respond to change in adaptive ways that promote balance? One promising approach to the sea otter human conflict is the integration of an interdisciplinary social-ecological systems approach that promotes weaving knowledge systems, and decolonizing methodologies that integrate equitable and respectful community participatory methods.

Through an extensive researcher team called APECS (Apex Predators, Ecostems, and Community Sustainablity, website: http://apecs-ak.org), we documented how sea otters are influencing a range of ecosystem habitats, and organismal and human communities in Southeast Alaska. Our work found that sea otters caused a significant changes to ecosystems and Indigenous communities. Document changes include: declines in availability and spatial extent of shellfish harvests for Indigenous people and deeply rely on these food resouces, increasing kelp canopy cover near sea otter presence, increased juvenile salmon and other fish communities in eelgrass habitats with higher sea otter presence, and positive tourism value associated with sea otters. APECS team members, Dr. Stephen Langdon and Dr. Sonia Ibarra specifically worked collaborative with four Tribes, community members, and youth in Hydaburg, Craig, Klawock, and Kake, Alaska. Through this process, Drs Langdon and Ibarra, met with Tribal councils, adapted research goals and methods to prioritize Tribal values, priorities, and processes, and included Indigenous youth and adults in all data collection and interviewing efforts. This focus was meant to lay groundwork towards creating an equitable platform in researchers and community members can co-create knowledge.

Indigenous communities have a long heritage of survival, adaptation, and productivity on the land and water. Thus, society at large may benefit from understanding Indigenous governance and management systems and how they are adaptive or vulnerable within interacting contemporary management systems. Spercifically, Indigenous people througout the Pacific Northwest and sea otter range have been in relationship with sea otter for millenia and oral history accounts and archaelogical research supporting this relationship, including management of sea otters and shellfish by human communities.  This millenial relationship was disrupted within a short 200 years by the colonization of people and place as Euroamerican settlers catalyzed and drove the furtrade that nearly extirpated sea otters throughout their range. We documented Indigenous community management recommendations about restoring balance between sea otters, people, and shellfish in Tlingit and Haida communities in Southeast Alaska. The following adaptive strategies were identified by Tlingit and Haida Harvest Experts including: shifting harvest locations away from sea otter presence, increasing sea otter hunting locally using spatially explicit techniques within a small 30 mile radius of the community, financial subsidies for sea otter hunters, creating local fur tanneries to offset costs of hide processing, legal changes to the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and market creation and development for sea otter handicrafts. To date, most research about sea otters has focused on ecosystem effects without consideration of how sea otter expansion and population increases are impacting Indigenous communities who have had a long history of coexisting with sea otters. 

Our interdisciplinary work can aid in advocating for Indigenous voices being centered in scientific research, mentoring and supporting Indigenous scholars, and decolonizing research practices while also considering the positive ecosystem effects sea otters can have in Southeast Alaska.  Additionally, our work acknowledges and strives to move away from colonial practices of extraction research, and may help create a new standard of culturally-responsive place based research that centers a common commitment towards just, equitable research.

Last Modified: 03/21/2023
Modified by: Stephen J Langdon