Rescued Baby Otters Find New Home at Shingle Shanty

Shingle Shanty Preserve and Research Station is the home of two young otters that were rehabilitated over the summer at The Wild Center in Tupper Lake. Shingle Shanty is a 15,000-acre biological field research station in a remote part of the western Adirondacks.

“The Wild Center staff reached out to us as a location for the rehabilitated otter release because of Shingle Shanty’s remoteness and our capacity to monitor the dispersal of these ‘re-wilded’ animals,” said Steve Langdon, Shingle Shanty’s director. “The release site is perfect otter habitat. I have seen otters in this location periodically over the past decade, and I am sure they will stick around the area.” 

Since May of 2020, The Wild Center’s animal care team has raised these two otters from babies, bottle feeding them every two hours. When asked about whether she would be worried about the animals after they are released Leah Valerio, Head Curator at The Wild Center said, “These animals belong in the wild and I try not to let my mind go to worry - but of course I worry about them.” 

The release occurred on October 8th on a perfect autumn day with bright blue skies and orange fall foliage. With help from students from Clarkson University’s Adirondack Semester, the two animals were carried in a heavy steel kennel from to the release site about 200 yards from the road. At times, the kennel was passed, bucket brigade-style, up the steep inclines leading to the release site, while the animals chirped and made other adorable otter noises from within. 

New York State otter populations have recovered somewhat since the 20th century when loss of habitat and bioaccumulation of contaminants such as mercury had caused population declines especially in the western part of the State. The northern Adirondacks has a legal river otter trapping season but because Shingle Shanty is on private land this is not a threat to these animals.