Two of our cheekiest residents, Saati and Squid have caused a splash with some delightfully stinky celebrations for World Otter Day.  

The Asian Small-clawed Otter duo couldn’t resist getting their tiny paws around a feast of fishy favourites!

Lovingly prepared by the animal care team and volunteers, whiting, prawns and yabbi were scattered around the habitat, alongside mega ice blocks packed with pilchard.

It was otter chaos as Saati and Squid sniffed, scurried and splashed around to track down every single tasty morsel.


At around 3kg each, the playful pair eat up to half of their body weight in a day!

They’re served 1kg of food each, delivered in creative ways to help keep them busy and engaged. 

Every enrichment activity is carefully designed to encourage their natural behaviours and instincts.

Known for their inquisitive nature, otters will investigate anything new in their environment with plenty of energy and enthusiasm.

For otters, food is often hidden inside of items or scattered in unexpected places to encourage foraging, swimming and the using of their dexterous paws to open things up just like they would in the wild.

Saati and Squid, however, are firm believers in working smarter, not harder.

While they’re more than capable of cracking open shellfish, they tend to opt for easy-access fish over tougher treats like crabs or clams.

Asian Small-clawed Otters are the smallest of all the species and are native to the rainforests of north-west India to south-east China, the Malay Peninsula, Indonesia and Sumatra.

And while they may be undeniably otter-ly adorable, the future of the species isn’t.

All 13 otter species are experiencing declining or endangered populations around the world.

World Otter Day is held annually on the last Wednesday of May to help raise awareness about the challenges they face, including the illegal wildlife trade.

Otters’ charismatic nature has seen their popularity online skyrocket, but this has also led to an increase in the illegal wildlife trade.

The widespread love for the species online has led to them being taken illegally from the wild, all for social media-driven revenue through likes and shares.

One way you can help otters and other wildlife is by not engaging with content online that shows otters in unnatural settings or living as pets.

Saati and Squid can be visited daily from 9am to 5pm in the Asian Rainforest.

FAST FACTS:

  • Otters have fingernails not claws.
  • They can eat up to seven small meals a day and like to wash their food before they eat.
  • Otters are monogamous, often pairing for life and raising their pups together.
  • Asian Small-clawed Otters are listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.