Otter News Archive

Famous otter finds new home

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18th January, 2008

Stuff.co.nz, New Zealand

Jin, the notorious otter who escaped Auckland Zoo and evaded capture for almost a month, was moved to a new home at Wellington Zoo today.

Four-year-old Jin and her partner Jala, who were moved to the zoo as part of an Australasian breeding programme, were released into their new home at 10am.

Jin first caught the media attention when she escaped Auckland Zoo in June 2006, digging through two walls and scaling a 1.8m high barrier to freedom.

She was re-captured near Rangitoto Island after 26 days on the run.

Wellington zoo spokeswoman Amy Hughes said everything went well today.

"They looked quite excited and went straight for a swim when they came out so that was cool."

The turnout to see the otters today was particularly good because of the school holidays .

"The kids were really excited to see them come out on their first day."

The otters should feel at home in their new enclosure which zoo keepers have spent the last week reverting back to its original layout, a dry river bed similar to the habitat wild otters in southeast Asia live in.