Last November, a river otter began stalking the prized koi fish at one of Vancouver’s biggest tourist attractions, a tranquil Chinese garden that had suddenly become a battleground between prey and predator.
People took sides on social media. Some declared themselves #TeamOtter, others were #TeamKoi.
The otter, native to B.C., was favoured by some who saw the ornamental koi as out-of-towners. During the river otter’s rampage, 11 koi were killed in Vancouver’s Dr. Sun Yat-sen Garden.
The park board, which oversees, the garden, removed three adult koi and 344 juvenile koi and took them into witness protection at the Vancouver Aquarium.
On Thursday ten koi were released generously donated by Nitobe Memorial Garden.
Today, we are thrilled to welcome our remaining original adult and juvenile koi home. Thank you to everyone for all the love and support! #OdeToKoi