NC Aquarium asking for help naming newest otter pups

FORT FISHER, NC (WWAY) — The NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher’s newest otter pups have yet to be named. But that’s changing soon.

The otter pups, one female and two males, were born January 31st and now have their own unique personalities. Because of that, Aquarium staff say they’re ready to receive their own unique names.

Naming choices have been narrowed down the choices to five trios of names and the community can vote through Friday 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 otter keeper Shannon Anderson.

The naming trios include:

TRIO 1 

1. Mazu (Chinese goddess of sailors and travelers)

2. Indus (River in India)

3. Lu (Short for Lutrinae, the sub-family of Asian small clawer otters. Also, a Chinese character meaning blessings, happiness, and prosperity)

TRIO 2 

1. Gemma (Latin for gem or precious stone)

2. Kai (Chinese for shell, triumph, or victory)

3. Ren (Japanese origins meaning purity. In Star Wars, Kylo Ren is the son of Princess Leia)

TRIO 3 

1. Tala (In Tagalog mythology, Tala is the goddess of stars)

2. Alon (Tagalog for wave)

3. Bayani (Popular Tagalog name for males, meaning the hero)

TRIO 4

1. Rani (meaning queen)

2. Lei (Chinese for bud)

3. Aki (Japanese origins meaning bright, light, clear)

TRIO 5 

1. Li (Chinese for power and beautiful)

2. Ryu (Japanese for dragon)

3. Bo (Chinese for wave)

Voting is open online HERE.