March 2024

Saving species at the NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher means partnerships and collaborations throughout the world. Aquarium animal care experts transported two Asian small-clawed otters, Milli and Shiny, from New York to North Carolina as the final leg of their long journey from Hong Kong on Jan. 22.

Caring for Asian small-clawed otters advances the Aquarium’s goals to save this species, as they are among the nearly 300 programs in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan® (SSP) Program. Bringing Milli and Shiny to the U.S. greatly enhances the ability of the SSP to achieve population goals for this species. The NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher team is caring for them behind-the-scenes during a 30-day quarantine. Milli may stay at Fort Fisher, while Shiny will move to another AZA-accredited zoo or aquarium.

While the Hong Kong otters get situated, Selene, one of the triplets born at the Aquarium in May 2022 is settling into her new home at the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium. It’s natural behavior for a mother Asian small-clawed otter, as the dominant female in the romp, to move out mature female otter offspring. Mae was the first otter daughter to leave the family in 2023. Now a family of six, visitors can continue to watch their shenanigans in Otters on the Edge.