“Otters & Their Waters” to open tomorrow!
Photo: North American river otter Pippi swims in the exhibit “Otters & Their Waters,” which opens Feb. 26 at Mote Aquarium in Sarasota. Credit: Conor Goulding/Mote Marine Laboratory.
Otters Huck, Pippi and Jane are otter-ly ecstatic to make their debut in Mote Aquarium's new exhibit "Otters & Their Waters,” which opens to the public tomorrow, Feb. 26.
The exhibit will feature these playful North American river otters, who were orphaned at a young age and raised by wildlife rehabilitators. Visitors can enjoy an otter's-eye view of watershed habitats. Watersheds — lands that drain water toward rivers, estuaries and the sea — are important to people and myriad wildlife, including river otters, their prey and many animals from land to the coastal oceans where Mote Marine Laboratory scientists carry out their research.
“A lot of hard work has gone into this exhibit, and we are thrilled to be able to share it with the public,” said Evan Barniskis, Assistant Vice President for Mote Aquarium. “These otters are playful, charismatic animals that can teach us a lot about our local watersheds. We can’t wait to share our love for these animals with our visitors.”
Aquarium guests will enjoy a two-level exhibit featuring a land area behind glass and an aquatic area behind acrylic, making it easy for visitors to see otters in both exhibit areas. The otters also have access to a den for rest and sleep. If visitors don’t see the otters moving about, they can try peeking into the den.
At the exhibit, Mote’s animal care specialists will work with the otters and educate guests during narrated training sessions. Narrators will describe the otters and explain where they came from, how and why they are trained, what they eat and why it is important to keep watersheds healthy.
“The otters are continuing to adjust to their routine and behavioral management or training program here at Mote," said Aquarium Biologist Amanda Foltz, who helps to care for the otters. "We train them using operant conditioning through positive reinforcement. This means they are rewarded for participating in certain behaviors.”
During these training sessions, the otters will learn behaviors that allow Mote staff to provide them excellent health care. Behaviors will include presenting parts of their bodies for checkups, entering a crate to be weighed and going to their individual target, which helps lead them to specific locations and separate them for feeding and training.
“Our ultimate goal is to have two routinely scheduled narrated training sessions during specific days each week," Foltz said. "The schedule will be determined soon. Until then, Mote staff will notify the exhibit volunteers daily about upcoming narrated trainings to inform our guests. We’re being flexible during the early days of the exhibit to do what is best for our otters’ care and training.”
The otters will participate in training to be fed the main items in their diet, such as raw fish. They will also be given many forms of enrichment, which provides healthy mental and physical stimulation. For instance, they can forage for enrichment foods such as carrots. Their habitat is also enriching.
“The otters are thriving in their new habitat,” Foltz said. “The exhibit has a slide that leads into a pool of water. They are like little kids going up and down the slide. It really is fun to watch.”
The otters arrived in late December to their temporary home behind the scenes at Mote, where caregivers prepared them to live in their new public exhibit.
“Otters & Their Waters” will be open during normal hours, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. seven days per week, at Mote Aquarium, 1600 Ken Thompson Parkway in Sarasota, Fla. The exhibit will be located at Mote’s Ann and Alfred E. Goldstein Marine Mammal Research and Rehabilitation Center.
This exhibit is made possible thanks to presenting sponsor Tourist Development Tax (TDT) and exhibit sponsors Alfred Goldstein & Jean Weidner Goldstein, Jane Graham Hyslop, James & Pati Ericson, Howard & Nancy Cobin, New Amsterdam Charitable Foundation, PNC Wealth Management, BMO Harris Bank, PGT Industries, Wohlers Family Foundation and Herald-Tribune Media Group.