Water Is Life is the latest new complex of habitats built at the Philadelphia Zoo, and it's a strange concept. Ostensibly home to Red Pandas and Giant River Otters, there is also a third habitat which last visit had a pair of Hamerkops, and this time a little colony of Vampire Bats! It's more suited to the bats. But when you think about it, Water? A unifying factor? It's really odd; and, it's also lovely. Both of the main spaces give the animals who live there lots of options for spaces to hang out--together or apart. This is no mean thing for the Giant River Otters.
Native to South America and calling rivers like the Amazon home, they are, indeed large! Twice the size easily of the more familiar North American River Otters, but still obviously taxonomic "cousins". Besides their size, Giant River Otters also have distinctive beige/white markings on the undersides of their jaws and necks. It appears that they're down to 3 otters now. When they first opened up the habitat to the public, they had two pairs. It's the only time I've ever witnessed otters mating... Fascinating, serious business.
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