On December 22, 2014, Colchester Zoo’s Aardvark, ‘Oq’, gave birth to a healthy baby! 

Photo Credits: Colchester Zoo

The exciting new arrival was the Zoo's last newborn of 2014 and is doing well! Both mom and keepers have a close eye on the baby during these early days.

The Aardvark is a unique animal, only found in Africa. They are almost exclusively nocturnal and love to sleep during the day, curled in a tight circle in their burrow. 

Aardvarks, such as Colchester Zoo’s group, have thick skin which is sparsely covered by hairs and varies in color from brownish grey to a pale sand. The newest little one is currently a hairless light grey, but within 12 months, it will be fully grown, just like its mother, and will soon be venturing out of the burrow. 

Aardvarks enjoy a diet mainly made up of insects, such as ants and termites. Once fully grown, an adult Aardvark can eat up to 50,000 of insect prey in one night!

The new arrival also joins the Zoo’s two other resident females ‘Puq’ and ‘Skyla’, and its dad ‘Adela’ can be seen at Colchester Zoo’s Aardvark Burrow.

With the latest arrival this group continues to be the most successful breeding group in the UK and one of the most successful groups in Europe.