SAN MATEO, CALIFORNIA – December 17, 2009 –
Coyote Point Museum’s animal family has grown by eight legs and two tails. Starting on Sunday, December 20, two baby North American river otters will go on public display at the Museum.

The two otters came to the Museum in November and after completing the Association of Zoos and Aquarium’s mandated 30-day quarantine period, they will begin the process of acclimating to their new digs in the Musuem’s public river otter exhibit. Both otters, a male and a female, are approximately seven months old. The female otter was captive born and came to the Museum from Dickerson Park Zoo in Springfield, MO after they decided they needed a different mix of otter personalities for their exhibit. The male otter was born in the wild in Washington, but was abandoned by his mother as an infant. He was found and briefly raised in a family’s home before being sent to Raptor House Rehabilitation Center in Washington. The rehab center determined that he was too imprinted by humans and could not be released back into the wild.

“The otters are interacting very well with each other and doing great in their new home,” said Nikii Finch-Morales, the Museum’s Director of Wildlife. “We’re excited for our visitors to meet them!”

The new otters join the Museum’s 21-year old North American river otter, Leroy, who is the oldest living male river otter in captivity in the United States. Over the next few months, all three otters will trade places on exhibit as they get used to each other and the exhibit space.