Castanet

A tranquil garden in Vancouver where a crafty otter has devoured about 10 expensive koi is set to reopen this morning.

Dr. Sun-Yat Sen Classical Chinese Garden closed last Friday after the river otter moved into a pond and began feasting on the carp.

The city's park board says garden staff lowered the water level on Tuesday and removed the two remaining adult koi and 344 juveniles.

The fish were transferred to Vancouver Aquarium for safekeeping, joining a third adult koi that was removed Saturday.

The park board says the otter first moved into the garden on Nov. 17 but has not been seen in a few days.

It says staff will refill the pond with water and modify the garden's entrance and exits to deter future otter visits.

Queen K wrote:

Glacier wrote:In otter news, they are having problems up in the Vanderhoof area where a massive increase in otter populations has led to otters now eating the ancient endangered sturgeon out of the Nechako river. They might drive the giant fish to extinction, but that's okay because otters are cute.

https://www.columbiavalleypioneer.com/h ... watershed/

And the clever little beggers eat around the transmiters, and it sounds like the transmitters are attracting the otters.

“It’s very emotional, the koi, they are very important as decorative elements in the garden but going beyond, being beautiful, they do have values and significance from a cultural perspective, especially in Chinese culture,” he said.

“I’d like to see that through this process, it brings greater awareness about animals, preservation and also the cultural meanings behind elements like the koi, which is something that can be positive out of this event.”