VANCOUVER—The koi-eating otter has struck again.

Local writer Lindsay Brown tweeted Thursday that an otter had killed all but two koi in a Kitsilano pond. She said the koi owners had seen the otter themselves.

Danny Kent, a fish expert with the Vancouver Aquarium, confirmed he was called to a Kitsilano residence on Wednesday to collect the koi that had survived the attack. There were only two left.

“They are nice, large, beautiful looking fish,” said Kent. The two koi were at least 20 years old.

Just last month, a river otter ravaged the pond at Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, eating all but three of the garden’s 14 prized koi.

So it’s no surprise the koi owners in Kitsilano had taken precautions by covering their two courtyard ponds with screens.

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“It looked like it wasn’t an easy task for the otter to get into there,” said Kent, who added he did not know how many koi lived in the ponds originally.

Vancouver Park Board biologist Nick Page said there’s no way of knowing whether this is the same koi-hungry otter that terrorized the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden last month.

The so-called “Chinatown Otter” left the garden last week, according to a park board spokesperson.

“It could be that one otter identifies koi or backyard ponds as a food resource to seek out,” said Page.

“They’re probably going to repeat the behaviour if it’s successful for them.”

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He estimated there are anywhere from 15 to 30 river otters living in and around Vancouver. The opportunistic animals generally eat marine fish but never stop looking for new food resources, he said.

“There is always a chance an otter will find your backyard pond.”

For now, the two koi from Kitsilano are safe and sound at the Vancouver Aquarium, living in the same room as the three koi aquarium staff saved from the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen garden last month.

The aquarium also collected 344 juvenile koi from the garden. The plan is to keep the fish at the aquarium until spring.

The Vancouver Aquarium has also put together several tips for concerned koi owners who want to protect their fish from predators:

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Ensure koi ponds are deep and steep-sided to help the fish avoid predators

Plant heavy vegetation in the pond and around its perimeter to provide cover for the koi

Install motion-activated sprinklers or security lights to deter predators

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