Four River Otters Born at Roger Williams Park Zoo

Roger Williams Park Zoo made a special announcement on the zoo’s official Facebook page for Valentine’s Day. The zoo proudly announced that there were four new otter pups to love as of Monday, February 1. An even split with two females and two males, the quadruplets were born to mom, Mishi, and dad, Clyde. Clyde passed away in April of 2020. As of right now, these cuties do not have names.

According to the Facebook post, mom and babies are bonding behind-the-scenes and will remain off exhibit for several weeks. At two weeks old, all four otters will continue to be monitored regularly. “Young North American river otters first open their eyes at one month of age, start walking at nearly six weeks, and will begin learning to swim at just under eight weeks. We anticipate Mishi will have her paws full with these loveable pups!”

Get our free mobile app

This is the second litter for Mishi and one thing I found to be very interesting is how this mama delivered them so long after her mate’s passing. I learned something new from RWPZ today.

“Female North American river otters undergo a process known as delayed implantation. Fertilized otter eggs will stop developing for eight to 10 months before implanting – usually during the late winter/early spring months. So, although Mishi and Clyde were last observed breeding nearly 11 months ago, keepers and vet care staff were only just able to confirm her pregnancy last month during an ultrasound exam.”