Like breaking a bottle of champagne on the bow of a ship.
That's how John S. Foster, executive director of the New York State Zoo at Thompson Park, described the site clearing for the otter exhibit on the zoo's grounds.
"We're just so pleased to be starting," he said. "I know it's something the community has been waiting for and it's going to be a really, really nice exhibit."
A Watertown city crew cleared the site Wednesday morning.
When it is completed, the exhibit will hold four river otters. By having two sets of two, Mr. Foster said, it will allow one pair to be active while the other rests. This will allow visitors to see an active pair throughout the day.
The zoo already owns one otter, Louie, who is staying at the Wild Center in Tupper Lake while the exhibit is completed.
The exhibit will be about 1,800 square feet, with one-fifth covered by water. GYMO Architecture, Engineering & Land Surveying is working on engineering drawings for the mechanical and animal holding building.
The estimated $250,000 cost of the exhibit will be covered partly by two grants obtained by former state Sen. James W. Wright, R-Watertown. One is a 2005 initiative grant and the other is a 2003 legislative grant. They total $100,000 and are administered by the state Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Another $50,000 came from the Sweetgrass Foundation and the remainder is donations generated through the zoo's capital campaign.
In other zoo news:
■ Zookeepers are successfully introducing a new 2-year-old female wolverine, Valentine, to the male wolverine, Stinky. Mr. Foster called the process "very, very conservative," with supervised play time. In July, Stinky contributed to the death of a mate.
■ Two more ravens for the exhibit with the turkey vultures have arrived. Huginn and Muninn are in quarantine.
■ The zoo has ordered the stainless steel mesh for the new bald eagle and turkey vulture/raven exhibits. It will take up to eight weeks to arrive. Mr. Foster said plans are to install it in mid-July and open the exhibit in late August or early September with a reception for members of the Bald Eagle Aviary 300 Club.
■ Gandalf, one of the zoo's gray wolves, died of complications related to bloat in April. "He was fine at 5 p.m. when we closed the zoo and he was dead the next morning," Mr. Foster said. The condition is relatively common in large-chested dogs.
