Denver Zoo welcomes 3 new animals, including a baby otter, golden lion tamarin and giraffe

The Denver Zoo has welcomed a trio of new arrivals from three different species this summer, including a newborn baby otter, golden lion tamarins and a giraffe.

According to the zoo, a pair of Asian small-clawed otters gave birth to a male pup on July 1.

The new family of otters are to “stay behind the scenes” in their den box for a few weeks until the newborn pup gains the ability to open his eyes and move on his own, the zoo says.

This new otter can be viewed by guests through the zoo’s Otter Den Box Cam, set up in the El Pomar Foundation Village Hall.

According to Jake Kubié, a spokesman for the zoo, the otter dad is named Pintar, and the mother is Bu, though the newborn “does not have a name yet, but we are working on that. Hoping to finalize it next week.”

As the young otter gets older, Kubié says, his eyes will open, teeth will come in, he will become more mobile, will begin to eat solid foods, learn to swim and, eventually, will make his way on exhibit with his parents, though it may be upwards of two months before he is on exhibit.

The day after he was born, the otter weighed in at 59 grams. By the tenth day since his birthday, he clocked in at 166 grams. The zoo say he “easily fits in a human hand.”

“This is Bu and Pintar’s first successful offspring so it will be fun to see how they continue to parent.  He is the third generation of otter from his mom’s side to live in this exhibit, so people may have seen his grandparents with his mom when she was a baby,” Kubié wrote in a press release.

Chino and Kimmer, a pair of golden lion tamarins, an endangered species of primate endemic to Brazil, also gave birth to a new baby earlier this summer at the Denver Zoo.