A little otter pup was found abandoned on Christmas day and fortunately workers at the Hessilhead Wildlife Rescue Trust have been able to nurse it back to health. They named it Nicholas after Santa Claus. I just wish I had pictures!
From the Sunday Mail UK:A BABY otter ditched and left to die in freezing weather has been saved by wildlife workers. The tiny six-week-old pup was discovered curled up in an old tyre by a dogwalker. He is now being handreared back to full fitness by staff at nearby Hessilhead Wildlife Rescue Trust in Beith, Ayrshire.
If your heart doesn't melt looking at this baby sea otter you're in the wrong place. This will definitely be in the running for cutest picture of 2009! This picture was taken by Steve who works at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Don't worry, mom otter is just out of camera range, probably getting food for her pup.
Steve writes:I don't get to work directly with our exhibit otters at the aquarium, but they sure are fun to watch. All 5 of our residents are non-releasable for one reason or another. Three of them were orphaned and raised here in our Sea Otter Research and Conservation (SORAC) program. They were released back to the wild, but had imprinted so much on people that they liked to do things like kayak, surf (!) and play with scuba divers. After repeated reports of these kinds of interactions by the same otter, US F&W decides they have to be recaptured before they are injured or injure someone. One of our residents never made the transition to the wild. She seems to have something like agoraphobia; when she was brought out of our tanks into the wild, she panicked and wouldn't leave the divers shoulders! The last one has a parasitic infection, toxoplasmosis. It causes seizures that look like epilepsy, and she can't survive without daily medication. When she was spotted in the wild having a seizure, we were able to capture her and save her. She had just had a still-born pup, and we had also just taken in an orphan from another part of the coast. We gave that pup to her, and she raised it without human interference. It was released and did just fine. Now she and two of the other otters act as surrogate moms to orphaned pups that we get, and we have a much higher success ratio of release. In fact, this past August one of the pups raied this wasy a few years ago had a pup of its own in the wild after mating with a wild male. I guess that makes one of our otters a surrogate grandmother!
Every time I see pictures taken by a pro like Andy, I really wish I had a better camera. I've been considering a new digital SLR but there are so many to choose from. I can only imagine how long Andy had to sit and wait in order to get these incredible otter pictures.
Kawausosu in Japan sent us this great video of otter babies at NOAH, The Inner City Zoo in Yokohama, Japan. Also, be sure to visit Kawausosu's new otter website, Kawausosu.com.
Lucky Memphis residents will get to see 9 new Asian small-clawed otters at the Memphis Zoo. I love the Asian small-clawed otters because they have limitless energy and the little rascals are always up to something.
From the Memphis Zoo:The next time you're in the CHINA exhibit at the Memphis Zoo, you will likely meet 9 of our new friends! The Memphis Zoo has recently acquired 9, yes 9, Asian small-clawed otters from the Newport Aquarium. The family group is comprised of an adult pair Chiko and Koto and 7 of their offspring. Chiko, the mom, can easily be identified by her "hop-a-long" gait from a previous hip injury. Koto, we're finding, is a dedicated mate to Chiko and is rarely found far from her side.
Curt just sent me an article from ZooBorns with baby Asian Small-Clawed otters and now I'm properly in the Holiday spirit!
From ZooBorns.com:These baby small-clawed otters are getting right into the holiday spirit at the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo, as they pose for a “family photo.” Not yet ready for primetime visitors, these four little ones were born on October 24 to their proud parents - mom, an eight-year-old female who hails from the Singapore Zoo, and dad, a nine-year-old male originally from Tokushima, Japan.
Gordon just sent me this hilarious Christmas story. *I originally posted this on December 10, 2007 but I thought it was worth reposting it for those who missed it the first time around.
If my house were on fire and my GF could run back in to save three things, I'm assuming the list would look like this…
Her computer
A river otter puppet named Jester
A sea otter puppet named Delta
She loves those two puppets more than anyone should love any inanimate object. So, with the holiday season upon us, I had the bright idea to sneak the puppets out of the house, buy them festive holiday outfits, and take them to the mall for a picture with Santa Claus.
All together now… 'Awww…'<¦'
Editor's Note: I have a policy where gifts that are meant to be enjoyed during the holidays are to be opened well before Christmas. So don't worry, this story isn't ruining anything for her, except maybe her opinion of me.
Getting Jester and Delta out of the house was easy enough, they were snuck out in a duffel bag under the pretense that they were video games I was returning to GameStop. First on the agenda was a trip to Michael's craft store. While there the otters tried on a few costumes that I believe are meant for teddy bears. Jester decided on a sharp elf ensemble while Delta found a charming reindeer outfit.
From there it was off to the mall for our date with Santa. Everything was going according to plan. You see, due to the snowfall, the mall was a ghost town. No line meant less people thinking I was a freak. I wasn't concerned though; I was armed with a duffel bag full of otters and the perfect story to keep me from looking like an idiot.
I approached the guy in charge of taking pictures.
'Hey, is it cool if I get a picture of my little buddies with Santa?' I asked.
Guy gives me a funny look, 'Sure…wwhat's this for?'
Here's where the perfectly crafted, perfectly innocent fib comes in… <
'My niece is a little bit intimidated by Santa and these are her best buddies. If they say Santa's OK, she'll be more open to paying a visit.'
The photo team thought this was an acceptable (and adorable) excuse. I looked like a hero instead of a freak with fuzzy puppets. Good times.
Santa and Mrs. (does she have a first name?) Claus were amused as I handed over the festive otters. The picture guy then says, 'I'll just give you a 5" x 7" for free to show her.'
It's at this point that perfectly crafted, perfectly innocent fib starts to feel like a dirty, non-spirit-of-the-season lie. No matter how much I protested and insisted, the guy refused to let me pay for the picture. Now I feel like a jerk. To add to the fun, Santa and Mrs. Claus are asking questions about the pretend, otter-loving niece.
I'm fuzzy on the 'Naughty' and 'Nice' list requirements nowadays, but I'm pretty sure lying directly to Santa's face is way up there.
They snapped the pic and gave me the ill-gotten print. I told them I hoped to be back with a less intimidated niece and headed off.
To recap: Otters are cute, Santa and his crew are beyond super nice, and I'm a filthy liar.
For otter lovers, the International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF) is one of the most important organizations because they've been caring for otters for 20 years!
From Press Dispensary:On December 12, 1988, the first otter was brought to the wildlife hospital on the Isle of Skye. Twenty years later, this establishment is now the specialist rescue centre of The International Otter Survival Fund ( IOSF ). The otter, Billy, had been hit by a car in Broadford, where IOSF is based. Fortunately the local vet had dealt with otters before, having been the vet for Gavin Maxwell, author of 'Ring of Bright Water', when he had his otters at Sandaig (Camusfearna). Billy’s injuries were not severe and so, after treatment, he was released back to the wild. That was the start, and now 20 years later more than 100 otters have been treated at the centre. Most of these are cubs which have somehow lost their mother but road casualties still do come in and there have also been otters which have suffered horrific injuries in snares. Cubs come to the centre from all over Scotland and Northern England and even Ireland and numbers are increasing. At present, the centre has eight cubs in care.
It was so amazing to see sea otters in the wild just floating and playing. After witnessing them in their natural habitat I feel even stronger about protecting them.
From the IAR Global News:A US federal body has proposed to protect 6,000 miles of habitat belonging to an endangered population of northern sea otters. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has suggested that the area located around Alaska's south-west coast, which is currently home to around 90 per cent of the state's otters, should be regarded as a "critical habitat".
Let's just hope that the otter will get some help from the government so their numbers in the wild can grow.
I've always thought that otters were the cutest animal on the earth so I thought I'd dedicate a whole web site to them. This site is also to bring awareness of sea otters being on the endangered species list. If you have any otter pictures or video to submit, read the FAQ.
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It was so amazing to see sea otters in the wild just floating and playing. After witnessing them in their natural habitat I feel even stronger about protecting them.
