By William Croyle
Enquirer contributor

NEWPORT - They're cute, cuddly and now there are three more of them.

Chiko and Koto, two of the Asian small-clawed otters at the Newport Aquarium, became the parents of one male and two female pups Aug. 20.

That bumps the total U.S. population of the endangered species to 106 and the worldwide population to about 350.

Chiko and Koto arrived here in May from Adventure World Shirahama in Japan. They were put on display in the Hidden Treasures of the Rainforest Islands exhibit in July but will now be out of sight with their babies until at least the end of November.

"The babies are very small and fragile, and the parents are very protective of them," said aquarium spokeswoman Jill Isaacs. "We want to take things slow and make sure their transition into the big exhibit comes at the appropriate time."

There are six other otters - all sisters - still on display, as they have been since their arrival from the Indianapolis Zoo in May.

The babies, still unnamed, weighed about 2 ounces at birth. Today, they weigh about 7-8 ounces.

"This is pretty neat that they're developing so quickly," said Ric Urban, curator of the rainforest at the aquarium. "They also just started opening their eyes, which is a little early in their development."

The parents and babies are in a nest where the mother nurses them and the father carries them around and protects them. The babies will start nibbling on fish in 20 to 30 days but will continue to nurse for about another three months.

Chiko and Koto will teach them to swim in about a month in a small, shallow pool before they're moved into the 8,000-gallon exhibit tank.

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E-mail williamcroyle@yahoo.com