The Slice
Fossa Fun
2/13/2026 | 1m 22sVideo has Closed Captions
Meet the Lake Superior Zoo's very energetic fossa named Koto...
Meet the Lake Superior Zoo's very energetic fossa named Koto as zookeeper Kelli Carroll shares a little bit about this animal type that has a key role in a familiar movie.
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The Slice is a local public television program presented by PBS North
The Slice
Fossa Fun
2/13/2026 | 1m 22sVideo has Closed Captions
Meet the Lake Superior Zoo's very energetic fossa named Koto as zookeeper Kelli Carroll shares a little bit about this animal type that has a key role in a familiar movie.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Chances are you've probably seen a fossa in the movie Madagascar.
Fossa are the bad guy, that all the lemurs are scared of.
I wouldn't necessarily agree with exactly how dastardly they're portrayed.
My name is Kelli.
I'm a zookeeper here at the Lake Superior Zoo.
Today we are hanging out with our fossa Koto.
Hey, do you want to come say hi to the camera?
A fossa is a really weird animal.
It's been described as a lot of different things.
Some people see fossa and they say they kind of look like a small cougar.
They're kind of just their own special little thing.
They are arboreal carnivores.
Think of videos you've seen of lemurs jumping around trees, just think of how arboreal an animal would have to be to hunt them.
And that's Koto.
He is incredibly acrobatic.
can turn his, paws to a degree that we can't, which helps him climb up and down trees.
They can hang upside down from their back, feet on ropes and swing.
When he's asleep, he looks very similar to a cat.
Just like curled up in a little ball.
When he's awake, you know he's awake.
He's got semi retractable claws.
Those help him scale walls.
He isn't always the most graceful all the time.
This exhibit is wonderful for seeing just how graceful he can be.
He is really, really curious.
He likes to know what's going on.
His energy is through the roof until he's tired, and then he just crashes.
He is active on and off throughout the day, which is really normal for fossa in the wild.
There's never a bad time to come see Koto because he's always doing something cute.
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The Slice is a local public television program presented by PBS North