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Sea otters, once bountiful along the California coast, were virtually wiped out by fur traders in the 18th and 19th centuries.

A population estimated at as high as 20,000 fell to mere dozens.

Since coming under the protection of strict wildlife laws in 1977, the playful creatures have been rising in number, but with agonizing slowness.

In the last decade, the population of California sea otters — which range from just north of Santa Cruz down to the Santa Barbara area — has grown by an average of less than 2 percent a year, according to yearly census figures.

The most recent count in 2017 was 3,186, down 86 from a year before.

“It’s just been a real slow increase over time,” said Dr. Shawn Johnson, director of veterinary science at the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, a nonprofit that rehabilitates ailing marine life.