Hello Aquarium family. It’s with great sadness that we share that our beloved sea otter Rosa passed away today. At 24 years old, Rosa was the oldest resident otter at the Aquarium and one of the longest-lived individuals of her species.
Comments
Log in with your Bluesky account to leave a comment
Thank you, Rosa, for all the 🦦 outreach you did during your time with us. I popped into the aquarium several times over the years to see you and your playful antics. RIP
I always knew this day would eventually come, and was grateful every day that it didn't.
Rosa did so much for her species. Thank you for giving her a good life until the very end.
So sorry for your loss. Rosa was a big part of many people's lives worldwide. Thank you for the love and care you gave to her. She will be sadly missed.
Beloved and cherished by millions of visitors and fans, she was recognizable thanks to her blonde head and her signature head-all-the-way-back swimming style. https://youtu.be/kg3jSqQIZhA?si=0ManVJpTqbvzRJF_
“Rosa was one of our most playful sea otters, and even at 24 years old, she would still be seen frolicking and wrestling with the younger otters when she instigated it,” said Melanie Oerter, curator of mammals.
Wild female sea otters live between 15-20 years. At 24 years old Rosa, despite receiving the best care, showed age-related health concerns in recent years. In the last few weeks, her health deteriorated.
After an exam, the veterinary and animal care teams made the difficult choice to humanely euthanize Rosa because those health conditions were compromising her quality of life. She passed away peacefully, surrounded by her caretakers.
Rosa’s legacy lives on both at the Aquarium and in the wild, where sea otter pups she raised continue to raise pups of their own, contributing to the recovery of their species and their ecosystems along the California coast.
Help us celebrate Rosa and share photos and stories in her memory and for the staff and volunteers grieving her loss. Thank you all for being such a big part of Rosa’s life. 🦦♥️
😿💔 Rosa was a big part of my boys' childhood memories. As passholders, we made many trips to visit when they were younger. We stopped by last summer and had planned to visit again this year. Eldest still loves otters the best. Thank you for a lifetime of education and fun, Rosa 💚
I am heartbroken. Every day I woke up to check out the girls and their everyday activity. She had such a life and did so much for otterhood. Rosa…what a sweet baby. My heart goes out to the entire aquarium family.
She sounds unique and unforgettable. I can only imagine how much you all will miss her presence. My guess is she took up a lot of space in more ways than one.
Well done you lot, we’ll be celebrating Rosa’s life for a long time to come, you allowed for her and her pups to thrive and you should be proud of that, she loved a long healthy life for a sea otter
I can’t believe she’s gone. I was hoping to see Rosa for her 25th birthday. I’m glad I got to see her a couple of years ago, at least. She brought a lot of joy into my life during some of the grimmest periods of the pandemic. Rest in play, Rosa. ❤️ 🦦 ❤️
Comments
💔
I always knew this day would eventually come, and was grateful every day that it didn't.
Rosa did so much for her species. Thank you for giving her a good life until the very end.
Swim on, Rosa. ♥️
https://youtu.be/kg3jSqQIZhA?si=0ManVJpTqbvzRJF_
I visited last October 🐋❤️