Home to what I believe are now the only sea otters in Europe, a trio of the Northern subspecies, Enhydra lutris lutris.
This area also showed me my first Black Oystercatcher, Haematopus bachmani, and the otters are mixed with fishes including a sizeable group of Leopard Sharks. The otter tank is one of those that, when viewed downstairs, has windows opening out onto the Open Ocean tank.
I've always found it fascinating to know that the sea otters here are in an exhibit mixed with plenty of fish swimming around them, and that must make for an intriguing mixed-species habitat. I'm fortunate enough to live in a location (southwest Canada) where sea otters in captivity are not that unusual, but the 2 left in Lisbon are apparently the only ones in all of Europe. Are they young or old otters? Is there a long-term plan to create more sea otter exhibits across Europe and does anyone know what the aquarium would do if the remaining otters died?
Two females, bred in 1998 and 2001/2? I think. I would like to see more of them, but I think giant otters are more relevant for captive breeding over in Europe.
Yor're fortunate enough to see Seaotters in the Wild....
The first Seaotters came to Lisbon in 1998 and bred several times-the breeding female seems to be already dead, and if the breeding male is still alive,it should be around 16-20 Years old-so it is near to Death.But maybe the animals currently kept are the offpspring-but I belive, the last Seaotter from Antwrep were send to Lisbon, too.
Some places in europe are much interested in keeping seaotters, so Oceanopolis Brest, they tried it to get them from the States a few years ago, but if failed, and the new Blue Planet Aquarium in Copenhagen-also not yet successful.So if you want to know, why it is almost impossible to import seaotters from the States, please ask the Us-Department for Wildife and Fisheries-they should know...
I don't know, what Lisbon will do after the last seaotter has died.....maybe they try to get new ones...maybe they have better conncetions to the States, this could enlarge their chances-a bit...
According to Zootierliste, Lisbon keeps two female Sisters, Micas and Mare, born at Lisbon in 2002.Lisbon has send them to Rotterdam for breeding with the single male from Antwerp, but the male died there in 2010, so Rotterdam has send the females back to Lisbon in 2010. So both are 12 Years old and they are too old for breeding.
