To celebrate Mother"s Day, we"re in California"s Monterey Bay, where a sea otter mom gives her 3-day-old pup a place to snuggle and gives us an amazingly cute picture to boot. These incredibly photogenic animal moms shower their kids with attention, cradling them and grooming them for hours. But all that love is more than a gesture of affection, as newborn sea otter pups can"t swim. A pup is totally dependent for about six months, so mom will carry it around on her stomach like you see here. When the little one does venture into the water on its own, mom will rub the pup to fluff its coat, which causes the fur to retain air bubbles, insulating it from chilly water and causing the youngster to float like a cork.
Happy Mother s Day!
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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World Oceans Day
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New Zealand s loneliest mountain
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Lake Pehoé, Torres del Paine National Park, Chile
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Feature Attraction: 85 years at the drive-in
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Happy holidays!
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A stunning national park in winter white
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Earth Day and National Park Week
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All Rhodes lead to the beach
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Flamenco dancers
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Clouds over the River of Grass
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Infant Sumatran orangutan, Indonesia
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Here, fishy!
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Happy Thanksgiving
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Colle Santa Lucia, Dolomites, Italy
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India Republic Day
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Meet our fuzzy Earth Day mascot
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Earth at Perihelion
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Red fox
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Avatar Mountains, Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, China
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When an ideal microclimate gives you lemons…
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Silver-studded blue butterflies
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International Rock Day
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Raise your hand for Teacher Appreciation Day
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Go Fly a Kite Day
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National Fossil Day
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Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia
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50 years of Earth Day
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Winterpret on ice
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Remembering the Arizona
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An ancient sailing tradition takes to the water