HSU: North Coast Otters sculptures head to auction
The painted North Coast Otters are headed to auction this month in an effort to raise awareness about otters and to fund otter research, Humboldt State University announced this week.
There will be an in-person silent auction of 32 of the artistic otter sculptures created by local artists on Sept. 11 from noon to 3 p.m. The silent auction will be outside at Clarke Plaza, across the street from the Clarke Museum. There will be an online auction of more than 70 other otters the following week.
Humboldt State wildlife professor Jeff Black led the otter project, with which he aimed to celebrate life, water, and otters as well as raise money for student projects. The sculptures were placed in Humboldt, Del Norte, Mendocino, Trinity and Siskiyou counties.
“I hope everyone who interacted with this initiative has learned more about art, nature, and science, and that our community has rallied in celebration of artists, clean water, and wonderful otters!” Black said in a news release.
“This project provided an accessible opportunity to explore our connection with nature through engagement with this charismatic
critter.”
There will be a public viewing of the more than 100 otter sculptures on Sept. 10. from noon to 7 p.m. at HPRC’S Connection Wellness Center on F Street in Old Town.
Additionally, there is an auction catalog available from the Humboldt State cashier’s office in the Student Business Services building and at the Ink People Center for the Arts at 627 Third St. in Eureka. The catalog costs $15.
“The North Coast Otters project encourages community members to participate in the ongoing ‘citizen science’ river otter records study by consistently reporting when and where wild river otters are observed throughout the North Coast region,” the university said in the release.
HSU students have been collecting otter records since 1999 from citizen volunteers as a means of tracking the quality of North Coast habitats.
“River otters, seen at all times of day in our area,
have captured the attention of thousands,” HSU said.
“The river otter sits at the top of the water-based food chain. When their numbers struggle, we know that there’s something wrong in the environment,” Black said. “There are 13 types of otters in the world,12 of which are listed as endangered or near-threatened. Our river otters in Northern California are making a comeback.”
More information at the auction can be found at https://app.galabid.com/
otters/register.