It’s been a busy few weeks in zoo animal news, so let’s do a rundown. The big baby announcement came from the Seattle Aquarium on January 14th: a new sea otter pup born to second-time mother Aniak. And it took the Aquarium eleven days to determine that the now nearly five-pound pup is a girl! (The need for mother-and-pup bonding time trumps our NEED TO KNOW.)

Being a female otter pup has its advantages, as Traci Belting, the Aquarium’s curator of mammals and birds indicated that “if the pup were a male, once it grew up, it would need to be transferred, so as not to cause conflicts with the father otter, Adaa. Now we know she can stay right here with her mother, Aniak, and her grandmother, Lootas.”

The new baby otter doesn’t yet have a crazy name of her own (no doubt it’s geographically-appropriate Inuit). So let’s just call her Kitty, and leave it at that. But noooooooo…everybody has to have their say, and thus the Aquarium will announce plans to invite the public to vote on possible names in a few weeks.

So head to the Aquarium to catch the pup while she’s still fluffy. Otters typically begin to shed their fluffy pup fur at about six weeks–and by ten weeks her coat will like an adult’s. The upside of losing all that fluff? Then the pup will be able to dive, which means plenty of swimming lessons from her mama. And just in time! Otters learn to open shellfish (by biting or pounding shells together on their chests) when they’re about three months old.

Meanwhile, the Woodland Park Zoo had a couple big babies of their own to announce: their 2011 attendance, which exceeded one million for the 11th consecutive year (1,094,514 visitors), and their private donations of $12.8M, the highest since the zoo began operating as a private non-profit in 2002.

And coming this May “mohawked” Visayan warty pigs from Asia and warthogs from Africa will debut at the zoo. In both cases, think a more punk, woolier version of the Wooly Pig. The zoo showcases will evoke the pigs’ endangered habitat in the Philippines, as well as that of their warthog cousins in the arid East African savanna. The zoo knows how to sell these critters: “Get ready to see some serious rooting, dusting, and wallowing.”

What’s bigger news than pigs with mohawks? The Zoo’s new penguin-feeding experience!

Here’s your chance to feed our tuxedo-clad birds! For $5, feed the zoo’s Humboldt penguins a handful of tasty fish and experience these endangered birds hand to beak. Feedings are offered through April 1, 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. daily at an enclosed area of the penguin exhibit.