-Central Park Zoo, NYC-
On Saturday, June 1, 1996, a North American River Otter escaped from the Central Park Zoo. It ran around central park for a while. It swam in the ponds and many children were frightened. The otter was finally captured and brought back to the zoo two hours after it had escaped.
I got a chance to talk with this animal and what it said is very interesting. When asked why it had escaped from the zoo, the otter said, "I couldn't keep living in the zoo. The conditions here are horrible! I know I might be shot in the wild, but I am willing to take that chance. The zoo habitat is way too small. I need big freshwater streams and big trees so I can build a real home. I want to learn to hunt on my own. Here they feed us dead fish. I had no choice, I had to leave the zoo."
To contradict the otter's statement the owner of the zoo, Mr. Thomas said that the river otter's habitat at his zoo was the nicest on the entire East Coast. It is still a mystery how the otter escaped. I will leave you with a question: should we continue to keep otters and other animals away from their environment just for our entertainment? I know one otter who thinks we shouldn't.
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