'Otterly' adorable

Photo: Vancouver Aquarium

Looking for something otterly adorable? It’s Sea Otter Awareness Week at Vancouver Aquarium.

From Sept. 21 to 29 there will be a number of opportunities to see and learn about the positively irresistible critters — from otter feeding and enrichment sessions to educational talks and bookable up-close encounters.

Visitors can expect to see furry buddies Tanu, Katmai, Mak, Kunik, Rialto, and Hardy show off their grooming techniques, paw-holding finesse and their skill at friendly wrestling matches.

Lucky visitors might even catch a glimpse of the newest member to the group, Tazlina, who was discovered by fishermen in Alaska in April as an abandoned newborn.

If you’re not able to visit the Aquarium, you can tune in to this live otter webcam.

“The Northern sea otters —the largest member of the weasel family — were once widely found all over the North Pacific Rim, from northern Japan to Russia, Canada and the U.S., but, by the start of the 20th century, the maritime fur trade had reduced that number to a mere 2,000,” an aquarium release stated.

“B.C.’s sea otters are descendants of 89 Alaskan sea otters that were relocated by government biologists to the west coast of Vancouver Island between 1969 and 1972.

“By 2008, their population had ballooned to 5,000, and at this point, estimates suggest that number has climbed to 6,000.”