Sirenians & Sea Otters

Sirenians and sea otters are aquatic mammals with very different feeding habits. Sirenians include plant-eating manatees and dugongs, while sea otters are carnivores that eat marine invertebrates. Both breathe air, nurse their young and depend on aquatic habitats for food. Dugongs commonly graze seagrass meadows, and manatees consume varied aquatic plants. Sea otters dive for prey such as shellfish and sea urchins, relying on dense fur for insulation. These animals share aquatic living but do not belong to one close scientific group.