Three giant otter pups at Chester Zoo have started learning how to swim.

Born to first-time parents Bonita and Manu, the triplets spent their first few weeks tucked away in their den before taking their first dip in the water.

Now at 15 weeks old, the pups are being guided through swimming lessons by their parents, who have taken a hands-on approach by carrying them one-by-one by the scruff of the neck and dropping them into the deep end

The litter includes two boys and one girl. The male pups have been named Uca and Yali, inspired by the Amazon rainforest and the Peruvian region of Ucayali. Their sister has been named Yara, meaning "river spirit" in Brazilian folklore.

Frazer Walsh, Keeper on the zoo's carnivore team, said: "Getting them into the water for the first time is a real family affair.

"Parents Manu and Bonita have taken a 'thrown in at the deep end' approach quite literally - gently grabbing the pups by the scruff of the neck and popping them straight into the water.

"It looks a little dramatic, but it's exactly what they'd do in the wild and it's working brilliantly as the pups are already finding the confidence to swim independently – which is just fantastic to see."

Giant otters are the world's largest otter species and are considered endangered in the wild.

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Conservationists estimate that only between 2,000 and 5,000 remain across South America, with the species already extinct in Uruguay.

Their decline has largely been driven by deforestation, water pollution and illegal hunting. The species is listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), meaning it faces a very high risk of extinction without urgent conservation action.

The giant otter pups have been born as part of the international conservation breeding programme in European zoos that's working to safeguard giant otters from extinction.