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Monterey Bay Aquarium announces poll to name new sea otter

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Published  March 27, 2025 11:33am PDT
Monterey County
KTVU FOX 2

The Brief

    • The Monterey Bay Aquarium is planning to welcome a new resident otter.
    • The aquarium is asking the public to vote on the new resident's name in a digital poll on its website.
    • The poll closes at midnight Thursday.

MONTEREY, Calif. - The Monterey Bay Aquarium is seeking the public's help in naming its new resident sea otter.

The aquarium's newest addition was found stranded in February 2024, as a three-week-old dependent pup, near San Luis Obispo, Calif. A press release sent out by the aquarium states the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined she was too young to be released. The animal is currently living "behind the scenes" with other rescued otters while aquarium staff prepare her to join resident sea otters Ruby, Ivy and Selka.

Staff name sea otters to make training easier. Names need to be easy for the animals to recognize, and sound distinct from one another. The aquarium's sea otter team describes the new otter as "smart, confident and protective," and chose three names for the poll, which will close at midnight.

  • Hazel: A name associated with wisdom, which fits the intelligent sea otter, as the hazel tree is considered the Tree of Knowledge in many cultures.
  • Opal: A colorful name for the playful sea otter; associated with the irridescent gemstone and there are many ocean-related opalescence references, like the opalescent nudibranch and the insides of shells.
  • Quinn: a name that comes from the Old Irish words for "head" or "chief," which matches her confidence, protectiveness and sassy side

The new otter will serve as a species ambassador at the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Sea Otter Exhibit and livecam. She can also potentially help other orphaned pups in the future - resident sea otters may act as adoptive mothers or companions to stranded young pups, and teach them survival skills such as foraging and grooming. Sea otters are an important part of a healthy marine habitat, and help restore wetlands and protect kelp forests, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Sea Otter Program aims to help the threatened species recover and return to its historic habitat along the California coast.

To further that goal, the aquarium recently built the Otter Conservation Center, a behind-the-scenes facility that expands the program's on-site capacity and enables staff to rescue and rehabilitate more sea otters. The project was funded by gifts from several individual donors and the State of California's Ocean Protection Council.

Monterey CountyPets and Animals