In a news release, the zoo explained that Juno’s training sessions help prevent stiffness and arthritis in her aging joints.
“Juno loves to play basketball,” said Nicole Nicassio-Hiskey, the zoo’s senior marine life keeper. “She gets so excited whenever we bring the ball out. And she’s good too!”
Juno, 9, is one of three Oregon Zoo otters that were rescued as orphaned pups off California and rehabilitated at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Otters are famously playful, but at the Oregon Zoo, only Juno excels at hoops.
“If she chooses to, Juno can pick one of the balls up in her front paws and dunk it into her special basket,” the zoo boasted. “She also ‘dribbles’ the ball by swimming around the hoop with it.”
Of course, Juno is always rewarded for her efforts: “She ends each session with some of her favorite fresh seafood.”
A 12-year-old Montana boy was attacked by an otter as he and a friend floated down the Big Hole River on inner tubes.
A 12-year-old Montana boy was attacked by an otter Friday as he and a friend floated down the Big Hole River on inner tubes.
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks stated in a news release issued Monday that the boy did not suffer life-threatening injuries during the rare attack.
The two boys were on a section of river west of Divide, upstream from the Powerhouse Fishing Access Site, when they spotted several otters in front of them.
One otter approached and attacked the boy before two adults who were camping nearby rushed to his rescue.
“Fortunately, the boy was able to receive prompt treatment for injuries that were not life threatening. The other boy was not injured,” Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks stated.
Otter attacks on humans are rare, but the animals can be tenacious while defending their young or their territory against potential threats.
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks explained that otters typically give birth in April and can stay with their young through the summer.
Low water level caused by drought might also have played a role in shrinking the otters’ territory and preventing the boys from maintaining a safer distance.
Signs have been posted along the river cautioning visitors about the incident.
A sea otter surfaced with a large shark in its grasp recently, to the astonishment of onlookers. But what happened next is not clear.
A sea otter surfaced with a large shark in its grasp recently, to the astonishment of onlookers. But what happened next is not clear.
The accompanying images, captured last Tuesday by Don Henderson and Alice Cahill inside California’s Morro Bay, represent the first documentation of a southern sea otter catching a horn shark, according to Michael D. Harris of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
“To my knowledge (and a group of colleagues), this is the first documented horn shark capture by a sea otter,” Harris, a sea otter biologist, told For The Win Outdoors. “There are reports of sea otters capturing skates and rays, but this is the first report of a shark. Sea otters will feed on fish, but it’s a very rare observation in California.”
Photo: Don Henderson
Southern sea otters off Central California prey largely on invertebrates, such as urchins, crabs, abalone, and clams. Northern sea otters, from Washington to Alaska, more commonly prey on fish, which could include sharks.
The images were shared via social media Saturday by the nonprofit, Sea Otter Savvy.
“If you watch sea otters long enough you will see a reasonable sample of bottom-dwelling sea life brought to the surface out of hunger or curiosity,” the group, dedicated to sea otter conservation, wrote on Facebook. “We are not sure which was the case here but these ‘jaw-dropping’ images are the first known record of a ‘foraging-like’ interaction between a sea otter and this creature.”
Photo: Alice Cahill
Followers were asked to guess the identity the shark species.
Horn sharks are solitary predators that shelter during the day. By night they hunt mollusks and crustaceans, which they crush with strong jaws and molar-like teeth.
It’s not clear if the otter was attempting to prey on the horn shark, since the observation was brief. However, sea otters do feed on the surface, using their chests as trays.
Social media followers also wondered if it was a playful, curious, or defensive behavior.
Sea Otter Savvy, noting the size of the shark, stated on Twitter: “Not surprisingly, while some nibbling may have occurred, the prey was not consumed.”
Harris, who was called to the scene but missed out on the observation, could not provide an answer.
“Unfortunately, we don’t know the outcome,” he said. “Was this a foraging event? Did the otter eat the shark or attempt to eat it? If not a foraging event, what was driving this sea otter behavior?”
After reviewing the photos, Harris said he was “fairly certain” that the otter is an adult female.
One person, referring to the face-to-face embrace in the photos, joked on Twitter: “They are star-crossed lovers, and no reality can convince me otherwise.”
–Images courtesy of Don Henderson (top two) and Alice Cahill
A man exploring Alaska’s Kachemak Bay on Sunday watched in awe as a sea otter trying to escape orcas took refuge on the transom of his boat.
A man exploring Alaska’s Kachemak Bay on Sunday watched in awe as a sea otter trying to escape orcas sought refuge on the transom of his boat.
John Dornellas, a guide for Coldwater Alaska, was touring a cove inside the bay when he spotted three transient orcas, or killer whales, and otters in the distance.
Suddenly, in an event that Dornellas captured on video, a large otter swam frantically onto the vessel’s transom and momentarily tried to climb onto the deck.
The footage shows the otter clearly in a predicament: In the water were three killer whales on a hunting spree, and in the boat, towering over the critter, was a perceived danger in the form of a person.
“Hey, I’m not gonna hurt you,” Dornellas says in the footage. “You’re good. You can chill up here as long as you need.”
Dornellas said the otter waited until the orcas were out of sight before jumping into the water and swimming away.
Sadly, the male orca shown in the video had something in his mouth during his close approach, and Dornellas said it might have been the otter’s calf.
“All conjecture, of course. But definitely a possibility,” he said.
The guide, who was exploring alone, said the male orca was with a female and a calf, and it’s possible they were teaching hunting methods to the calf.
“This is the same transient family that we have seen time and again,” Dornellas said. “The same male orca has approached my boat on multiple occasions, almost going out of his way to come pay me a visit.”
Kachemak Bay is an arm of Cook Inlet on the southwest side of the Kenai Peninsula.
Transient orcas, or killer whales, are encountered from southeast Alaska as far south as Southern California. They prey exclusively on marine mammals.
