An orphaned sea otter that made headlines after she was rescued from a California beach and nursed back to health at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago has died, aquarium officials said.
The Shedd Aquarium announced the news Thursday, saying the rescued otter “died suddenly overnight.”
According to Bill Van Bonn, vice president of animal health at the Shedd, initial results of a necropsy, or animal autopsy, “show a rare and sudden abdominal condition of which the underlying cause is typically unknown and signs of initial illness are masked.” Additional testing is expected to reveal more information in the coming weeks.
“It is a very sad day for Shedd Aquarium – we’ve lost a family member,” Bonn said in a statement. “Animal care is our top priority and we continue to learn so much from the animals in our care. Giving her an extended chance at life by providing for her recovery and care here at Shedd, Cayucos gave us the gift of knowledge by allowing us to observe her social and biological behavior – which has contributed valuable insights that inform ongoing animal welfare and environmental conservation efforts for wild sea otter populations.”
The sea otter named Cayucos was found stranded on a California beach in December 2011. She was named after the beach where she was rescued.
She was transported to Monterey Bay Aquarium before making her permanent home at Shedd in January 2012 after US. Fish and Wildlife Service deemed her unreleasable.
Cayucos was the first Southern sea otter ever in the Shedd's population. She made her first public appearance at the aquarium in May of 2012.
U.S. & World
“Cayucos was easily distinguished by her dark color and very social and outgoing as she loved playing with hard plastic abalone shells and green sea stars—made of the same heavy wool as the “kelp” car-wash strips the otters love,” Lana Vanagasem, manager of penguins, sea otters and dogs, said in statement. “One of her favorite games as a pup was to pounce and bounce on various-sized buoys and buoyant balls and with her playful personality Cayucos was a beloved ambassador for her species. We are devastated by her loss.”
