'Sweet Emotion' for More Pygmy Slow Loris Twins
September 10, 2014
The El Paso Zoo is excited to announce the birth of twin Pygmy Slow Lorises!
Photo Credits: El Paso Zoo
The tiny, nocturnal primates were born August 22nd to mother, Kym Ly and father, Steven Tyler. They are the second set of Pygmy Slow Loris twins born at El Paso Zoo. Their older siblings, Meka and Malia, were born in April of last year.
The yet-to-be-named duo had their first medical exam, recently. The male weighed in at 52.4 grams and his sister, a petite 43.5 grams. Holding them in your hand, they would each feel about the heft of a small lime!
Area Supervisor, Rachel Alvarez, said, “We are excited about the birth of this second set of twins. It’s difficult to breed Slow Lorises, and it’s taken a lot of work from our staff to have these successful births. Through our work with Kym Ly, we have been able to help her become a confident and cooperative mother.”
The births are part of a breeding recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP), to aid in the species’ conservation. The exhibit is currently blocked off to allow mom and twins to bond. They are expected to be on exhibit later this month.
See more amazing pics below the fold!
Native to Vietnam, Laos, eastern Cambodia, and China, the Pygmy Slow Loris is arboreal. Unlike other primates, it does not leap among branches, but will, instead, crawl with slow movements.
The Pygmy Slow Loris is currently classified as “Vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List. In Vietnam, the species is heavily exploited for traditional medicine and the pet trade. The Pygmy Slow Loris is also considered a food source in other native areas, and it suffers exploitation due to habitat loss as a result of agriculture and human settlement.