Edinburgh Zoo welcomes six 'adorable' newborn Asian small-clawed otter pups

Edinburgh Zoo has welcomed six newborn Asian small-clawed otter pups, with the five boys and one girl bringing the family to a total of fourteen.

The litter was born in May to mum Luna and dad Barry, but have only just started to emerge from their den to say hello to visitors.

Even though the species isn’t endangered, numbers of them in the wild are declining due to habitat destruction.

Keepers say the new arrivals are healthy and settling in well.

Alison MacLean, carnivore team leader at Edinburgh Zoo said: “We are delighted to welcome our newest additions, who are already proving to be very feisty.

“Barry and Luna arrived at the zoo in 2020 and have previously shown themselves to be very attentive parents.

“They can often be seen swimming and diving with their older pups in the stream in their enclosure.

“With the addition of the new arrivals, we now have 14 Asian small-clawed otters here at the zoo. The species live in family groups consisting of a mum and dad then their older offspring who help to raise the younger ones.”

At just nine weeks old, the pups are still dependent on mum and are spending most of their time in their underground holts.