On April 20, tragedy struck the Smithsonian’s National Zoo when two baby otters died from what biologists believe to be the ingestion of dye painted on their fur for identification purposes. The deceased pups were part of a litter of 11 babies who were recently transported from the Santa Barbara (Calif.) Zoo along with their parents. After the two otters’ death, the National Zoo pledged to stop using the dye thought to be fatally harmful.
But tomorrow, there will be much to celebrate, when the otter family is officially unveiled to the public on the National Zoo’s Asia Trail. The 11-member family of Asian small-clawed otters will make their debut at 10 a.m. Saturday (8 a.m. for members of Friends of the National Zoo who nabbed now sold-out tickets).
And they’re pretty damned adorable.
The otter family’s trip from Santa Barbara was paid for by Whole Foods Market, which in addition to paying for transportation, conservation and otter-themed programming, also won naming rights. Yep, all but one of the National Zoo’s newest residents have food-themed names.
The father is Chowder. The mother is Clementine. And their children are named Pork Chop, Pickles, Saffron, Olive, Peaches, Turnip, Radish, Rutabaga and Kevin. Eight of those names were selected by Whole Foods; the ninth was picked through a Facebook poll, and you’ll never guess which one.