Public invited to vote on names for otter pups at Aquarium at Fort Fisher

FORT FISHER, N.C. (WECT) - The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher is inviting the public to vote on proposed names for the newest members of the Asian small-clawed otter family.

The one female and two male otter pups were born on Jan. 31, and you can vote on one of five trios of names through Friday, March 24 at noon.

“We are honored to have input from the volunteers at the Aquarium who researched and shared meaningful naming ideas based on the native habitat of Asian small-clawed otters. We’re sharing the top five trios of names and asking our community to vote for their favorite,” said Shannon Anderson, the otter keeper at the aquarium.

The names include:

TRIO 1

• Mazu (Chinese goddess of sailors and travelers)
• Indus (River in India)
• Lu (Short for Lutrinae, the sub-family of Asian small clawer otters. Also, a Chinese character meaning blessings, happiness, and prosperity)

TRIO 2

• Gemma (Latin for gem or precious stone)
• Kai (Chinese for shell, triumph, or victory)
• Ren (Japanese origins meaning purity. In Star Wars, Kylo Ren is the son of Princess Leia)

TRIO 3

• Tala (In Tagalog mythology, Tala is the goddess of stars)
• Alon (Tagalog for wave)
• Bayani (Popular Tagalog name for males, meaning the hero)

TRIO 4

• Rani (meaning queen)
• Lei (Chinese for bud)
• Aki (Japanese origins meaning bright, light, clear)

TRIO 5

• Li (Chinese for power and beautiful)
• Ryu (Japanese for dragon)
• Bo (Chinese for wave)

You can vote on the names here or at the aquarium via a QR code and get tickets on its website.

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