The 'pioneer' otter with a special love story

Mimi was born in 2011 and moved to Washington Wetland Centre the following year

The death of an otter who made history among the species and warmed hearts with her love story has been a "massive shock", one of her keepers said.

Mimi, who died on 1 March, had been living at Washington Wetland Centre near Sunderland since 2012.

The centre believe she is among the first Asian short-clawed conservation otters to receive a birth control implant.

But it was her close bond with otter Musa - who she shared nine cubs with - that brought her to the public's attention.

Keeper Daniel Scott, who looked after Mimi over the past year, said although she could be a bit bossy she was also very affectionate with Musa and "had a heart of gold".

"It's been a very tough weekend and week," he said. "It's been a massive shock to a lot of us."

Mimi was born in Chessington World Of Adventures and moved to Washington Wetland Centre in 2012, when she was about a year old.

In October that year she was introduced to Musa.

The centre said the pair became inseparable right away and "there was simply no room for other otters in their world".

"It was a very close-knit bond and she was very affectionate with Musa as well," Mr Scott said.

"Often otters do a thing when if they are in a relationship, they both drink at the same time and they kiss after they drink so it was good to observe that pretty much every time they drank, which was quite cute."

Seeing Musa and Mimi share a kiss was "quite cute", keeper Daniel Scott said

They welcomed their first cub Ruby in 2015, with Ash, Tod, Pip and Sam arriving in 2016, followed by Buster, Rita, Irene and Shirley in 2017.

In June 2017, Mimi had a birth control implant to give her body a chance to rest after the successful birth and rearing of the cubs.

The centre said it also helped research into the species, including planning a suitable mix of genes into the breeding programme.

"She also provided a lot of valuable information and a host of research which helped us and others to understand much more about the physiology of her species and the conditions they need to thrive as Mimi did," Washington Wetland Centre added.

Ash, Tod, Pip and Sam joined the family in March 2016. They are one-week-old in this photo

Mimi died after a short kidney illness related to her age.

After a trip to the vets, she was reunited with Musa so he could say goodbye.

"One of the very tough things we did have to do after we took her to the vets is we had to put her back in with Musa just so he could realise that she's gone," Mr Scott said.

"If we didn't do that he'd be very vocal and he'd be searching round the enclosure for her, thinking she was coming back."

He added Musa was doing well and there were plans to introduce him and son Buster back in the main exhibit of the centre.

Mimi could look a bit grumpy, but lived a very happy life

Reminiscing about Mimi, Mr Scott said: "She was very cute.

"I think the bond she had with Musa was really good to see.

"Sometimes she did look a bit grumpy in her facial expressions, but she had a heart of gold and she could be mischievous as well.

"She lived a very happy life."