Quads were n-otter-nough
IMAGINE your first Mother’s Day with five new babies – that’s the case for Jafar, an Oriental Smallclawed Otter who lives at Dubbo’s Taronga Western Plains Zoo.
The quintuplets arrived into this world on April 28, much to the delight of zookeepers and staff, a welcome morale boost for the zoo which has been closed to the public for weeks because of COVID-19 restrictions.
Keepers watched the birth unfold via CCTV cameras that have been placed in Jafar’s nest. The first pup was born at 10.59am and the last pup born just before midday, making it a fairly busy hour for the mum.
Otter Keeper Tarryn Williams said it was really exciting to be present for the birth and be able to witness it all unfolding.
“Often we arrive at work and the pups have been born overnight or in the early hours of the morning, so to see it happen was really special,” she said.
“Jafar had spent a lot of time in the nest box that morning and we observed a lot of nesting behaviour, then from about 10am it was obvious she was quite uncomfortable and we assumed she might be in labour.
“It was a really proud moment for the keepers seeing how well Jafar was doing and how the other Otters in the group were responding.”
Jafar and mate Harry are old hands at the multiple-birth-justbefore-mother’s-day thing – on May 1 last year they welcomed four pups.
Miss Williams said both Jafar and Harry are amazing parents, with Jafar far more relaxed this time around, while Harry regularly cares for his brood, grooming, toileting them and making sure they are covered in the nesting material in the nest box.
“Jafar and Harry have four extra helpers this time around too, as the pups from the previous litter take an active role in raising the pups,” Miss Williams said.
“At this stage we don’t know if the pups are males or females as we just monitor the group via CCTV cameras in the nest box.
Zookeeper Amy Sturrock keeps a close eye on the new otter pups via CCTV cameras. CCTV cameras allowed zoo staff to monitor the birth of the otter pups. PHOTOS: TARONGA WESTERN PLAINS ZOO
There will be an opportunity to weigh the pups, determine their sex and health check them in the coming weeks.”
There’s no hard and fast times for otter pup developments, with their eyes normally opening between 28 and 47 days.
They’ll start to emerge from the nest box at around 52 days onwards and it is from this point on that they will start swimming lessons as well.
The zoo is temporarily closed for the health and safety of guests, staff and the broader community, and to comply with social distancing measures mandated by the government and health authorities across the country to prevent the transmission of COVID-19.
Digital technology has meant the zoo’s fans from across Australia and the rest of the world have been able to stay in touch, and staff anticipate there’ll be plenty of otter fans accessing the lives of the latest quintuplets via www.taronga.org.au/tarongatv
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