Who’s the most expensive marine mammal to feed at SeaWorld San Diego? A young, rescued California sea otter (weighing in at 20 pounds) is trying to take that top honor, eating a whopping 6 to7 pounds of shrimp, crab and clams every day. Wow, that’s about 32 percent of her body weight!
But SeaWorld keepers don’t seem to mind and are enjoying every minute of taking care of this adorable animal. California sea otters are a threatened species, and SeaWorld has a long history of caring for young rescued pups.
Our new little pup was found abandoned on a beach in Monterey, California. About two months old at the time, she was a bit lethargic and suffering from a parasite infection. The nice folks at the Monterey Bay Aquarium rescued her and started initial treatment, but didn’t have the capacity to care for her long-term. We welcomed her to the park on March 17 (St. Patrick’s Day), and with our team of otter experts, SeaWorld San Diego is the perfect place for her.
She started off in a behind-the-scenes nursery, but these days, she’s being cared for at our sea otter nursery at Rocky Point Preserve, where guests can see her through the window -- eating, playing and just being the adorable otter that she is.
She is getting healthier every day and adjusting well to her surroundings. Keepers are working on a name for her (something with a St. Patty’s Day theme, in honor of the day she arrived). Eventually she’ll be introduced to the other otters at Rocky Point, which were also taken in by SeaWorld, as part of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Sea Otter Research and Conservation (SORAC) program.
