This CA Sea Otter Just Celebrated Her 22nd Birthday

MONTEREY BAY, CA — One of the oldest southern sea otters on display in the world celebrated her 22nd birthday this week.

Rosa, who sports a head of silver hair speckled with white freckles, was named after a character in acclaimed author John Steinbeck's breakout novel "Tortilla Flat," which propelled the Monterey Bay area into the national spotlight.

She was rescued in southern Santa Cruz County as a 5-pound, month-old sea otter pup in September 1999, according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, where Rosa has been on exhibit since 2002. She was found stranded as an orphan.

Federal officials determined that Rosa became so comfortable around humans that she could not safely be released back into the wild after monitoring her progress during a two-year trial period in the ocean. But she's been an "otterly pawesome" addition to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the aquarium said.

She's done so much for the next generation of sea otters that the aquarium called her work historic.

Rosa helped raise 15 orphaned sea otter pups before she retired in 2019, according to the aquarium. That's more than any other surrogate mother on exhibit there.

At age 22, Rosa is nearing the end of her life span. She needs a little extra love but still eats and grooms often and remains active in the aquarium despite a heart condition, problems with her eyesight and arthritis in her hips. Rosa continues to participate in daily training sessions, though her routine was scaled back.

Want to say "hi" to Rosa in person? She's one of the aquarium's larger sea otters. You might find her swimming with her head fully tilted back or cozying up to guests, floating along the sea otter exhibit's center window after eating, the aquarium said.