- Sea otters, unlike seals and whales, do not have subcutaneous fat and rely on fur for heat retention. Their hair density reaches 45,000 per cm², creating an air layer.
- Sea otters are peaceful because even small wounds can lead to death from hypothermia due to damage to their fur.
- The sense of touch in sea otters is so well developed that blind individuals can feed using the sensitive pads of their front paws and vibrissae. Even without vision, they find food by analyzing it with their vibrissae.
- The sea otter's dental structure is unlike that of mustelids and most carnivorous mammals. It has only two pairs of lower incisors (dental formula: 3.1.3/3.1.3).
- The sea otter's lungs account for 6 % of body mass and fit into the thoracic cavity due to an oblique diaphragm. Sea otters have lungs 2–4 times larger than those of pinnipeds.
- With age, areas of the sea otter's skin not prone to graying darken from reddish tones to dark brown and black, while areas prone to graying, especially the head, lighten.
- The sea otter’s nostrils close when diving underwater to prevent water from entering the nose. The elastic walls of the nostrils allow this to happen.
- The sea otter can run on land, arching its back and moving its paws rapidly. For this, it brings its front and hind limbs close together and quickly moves, rapidly moving its paws along the ground.
- The sea otter pulls a sea urchin out of the water and cracks its shell against hard objects to reach the eggs. It holds the urchin in its front paws and swims on its back toward rocks or other hard objects.
- The sea otter has strong jaws equipped with powerful muscles and shortened for increased compression — adapted to biting and chewing hard food. The sea otter’s cranial capacity index is 5.80.
- The sea otter's digestive tract makes up 15.5% of its body weight. Its intestine is long and exceeds the body length more than 10 times.
- The sea otter's molars are broad and flattened, adapted for chewing hard mollusks and crab shells, not for holding slippery fish. In some individuals, the number of teeth reaches 34.
- In summer, common sea otters experience hair loss, especially in "Kamchatka" individuals. This phenomenon is particularly observed during the summer period.
- During mating, the male sea otter holds the female by the nose with his teeth, and mating ends with a painful bite. Experienced females have characteristic scars on their noses.
- Sea otters regularly groom their fur to maintain the cleanliness of the underfur. Contamination of this fur can lead to direct skin contact with water and hypothermia.
- The ear flap of a sea otter closes with elastic walls when submerged, preventing water from entering the ear. The elastic walls close the flap, narrowing it toward the outside and forming a tube.
- Male sea otters are larger than females: they are usually 35% heavier and 10% longer. Adult males weigh between 22 and 45 kg.
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