ZooBorns

Baby Klipspringer Springs Onto Exhibit!

Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden is proud to welcome a baby Klipspringer (Oreotragus oreotragus) to the Zoo.  This male calf, born on January 6, 2012, is with his mother and father in an exhibit near the zoo’s Entry Plaza.  The father was born in Detroit in 2001 and has been at Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden since 2003, and the mother, born in Jacksonville in 2007, has been at the zoo since 2009.  There are currently only about 30 Klipspringers in zoos across North America.

Photo credit: Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden

The word Klipspringer is Afrikaans for “rock jumper.” Klipspringers are small African hoofed animals that are very sure footed and can easily navigate rocky terrain.  They typically only weigh about forty pounds and stand about twenty-two inches tall at the shoulder.  These animals are strictly monogamous and stay within feet of their mate at all times, taking turns eating and keeping watch for predators.  These delicate animals have large and widely spaced eyes, and the males have four to six inch long horns.

Little Langur Swoops into Mesker Park Zoo

Longtime ZooBorns readers will know what a bright orange baby monkey means... a newborn Francois' Langur! Mesker Park Zoo is proud to announce the November 26th birth of a little male to mother Liang. The orange bundle of joy is held constantly by either Liang or Sai, another female langur in the collection, even when he clearly wants to go adventuring, as in the video below.

Francois’ Langurs are endangered leaf-eating monkeys found in the forests of Vietnam, Laos, and China. Over the last 20 years the Langur population has decreased by a shocking 85%, primarily due to hunting. Interestingly, these monkeys typically live on limestone cliffs where they prefer to sleep in caves if available. There are only about seventy Francois Langurs in fourteen North American Zoos, seven of them found at Mesker Park Zoo. 

Little Monkey Doing Great after a Rough Start

Born late last year, this little Colobus monkey got off to a rough start. Health problems resulted in her small size for her age and it appeared that mother, Zoe, might not be producing sufficient milk to nourish her baby. Luckily, veterinary and zookeeper staff at Mesker Park Zoo stepped in, providing supplemental feedings around the clock. Today little Garnet is bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as you can see in the pictures below. Colobus monkeys are born white and turn black as juveniles.

Photo credits: Jessa Franck

Jaguar Cubs at the Mesker Park Zoo

On September 22nd, the Mesker Park Zoo welcomed two beautiful jaguar girls born to first time parents Beliza and Cuxtal. The cubs currently weigh 7 pounds, but are gaining weight quickly so we suggest you get to the zoo as fast as possible. However, if a trip to Indiana isn't in the cards in the near future, you can watch them from anywhere in the world via the zoo's live streaming Jaguar Cam!

 

 

And a picture of mom lounging.

 

Photo credits: Brad Fichter / Mesker Park Zoo

Early Morning Delivery

In the wee hours of August 20th, the Mesker Park Zoo welcomed a new Grant's Zebra foal to the fold. The smallest of the six subspecies of Plains Zebras, Grant's Zebras are threatened in many African regions by civil war. This baby is the 12th surviving offspring of mother "Press" and weighed a svelte 65 lbs at birth.

Miley the Baby Bactrian Camel

Originally ignored by her mother, the Mesker Park Zoo's newest Bactrian camel calf was cared for by keepers for her first week. However, mother camel, Renee, finally came around and is now hopelessly devoted to her little girl, following little Miley everywhere around the exhibit.

Above Photo Credit: Bill Palmer

Learn more about the little camel on the Mesker Park Zoo's blog.