Oni the okapi, who featured in the first episode of last week’s ITV documentary, London Zoo: An Extraordinary Year - has delighted zookeepers at the iconic zoo by giving birth to a healthy baby girl. 

The second-time mum, whose lockdown pregnancy took centre stage in Thursday’s episode, went into labour late on Sunday 20 September before giving birth to the adorable calf – given the name ‘Ede’ by zookeepers – the following morning.  

After spotting that Oni was in labour, dedicated keepers kept a watchful eye overnight on CCTV - rejoicing when tiny hooves and stripy legs began to emerge following a 12-hour vigil. The wide-eyed calf took its first wobbly steps minutes later and was tottering around confidently soon after. 

ZSL okapi keeper Gemma Metcalf said: “Like all okapis, Oni had a long pregnancy - close to 16 months - so we’ve been excitedly waiting for Ede for a long time.  

“As viewers saw last week, her lockdown pregnancy posed some logistical challenges for our team, but despite the Zoo being closed we remained by her side to make sure she had the highest standard of care throughout her third trimester - we’re delighted that both mother and baby are now doing so well.” 

Episode 1 of the acclaimed documentary saw zookeepers and vets come together over Microsoft Teams to plan and perform a vital ultrasound on Oni during lockdown, while ensuring everyone involved remained two metres apart – coincidentally the length of an okapi. 

“Oni has always been a star in our eyes, but while she’s currently shining on screen she’s also excelling off-screen - at being a brilliant mum. 

“Ede is already a feisty young calf and has been bouncing happily around the stables, but Oni is keeping her in their cosy indoor dens until she feels Ede is ready to explore their lush outdoor paddocks - we can’t wait for our visitors to see the newest addition to the zoo family.” 

Ede’s birth is exciting news for London’s zoo, but even more important for the global breeding programme for the species, which ensures a healthy population of okapi in zoos across the world. Okapi, found only in the forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo, are classified as Endangered by the IUCN, with their survival threatened by habitat loss and hunting. 

Episode 1 of London Zoo: An Extraordinary Year is available to watch on the ITV Hub now, with episode 2 scheduled for broadcast on Thursday 1 October.  

ZSL London Zoo reopened to the public on Monday 15 June after an unprecedented three months of closure due to the coronavirus lockdown. The loss of income put the charity zoo under huge financial pressure as they continued to provide the highest level of care for their animals. Now open to limited numbers only, ZSL, the international conservation charity behind the Zoo, is calling on the public to help ensure they stay open by booking a ticket, joining as a member or donating to ZSL at www.zsl.org    

Bailey, an 8-year-old reticulated giraffe at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, welcomed her very first calf to the herd at 11:37 a.m. yesterday, September 28. Bailey and the female giraffe calf are doing well. Following Cheyenne Mountain Zoo tradition, the calf will be named after she is 30 days old.

“You couldn’t ask anything more of a first-time mom,” said Jason Bredahl, giraffe animal care manager at CMZoo. “Bailey is nonstop grooming her baby, paying attention and making sure the baby is in a good position to nurse. Mom is doing a great job.”

The little calf is doing well, too. She’s already winning the hearts of CMZoo staff and online fans.

“This is probably the smallest giraffe calf I’ve ever seen,” said Bredahl. “Bailey is small for a giraffe, too, so that’s not surprising. She’s super adorable. She’s strong and is nursing well, so we’re really excited to share her with everyone as soon as we can.”

At first, the calf had a hard time standing because she had positioned herself in a corner of the stall and she kept bumping into the walls before she could get her footing. After waiting to see if she could get up on her own, keepers and vet staff asked Bailey to move into another area so they could give the calf a hand. The team picked her up and moved her into the middle of the stall around 1:27 p.m. She took her first steps on her own after a quick medical assessment, then a nudge from mom, at 1:38 p.m. As long as keepers observe that baby and mom are doing well, they will continue to let Bailey take the lead on providing her care.

The weight and height of the calf are not known yet, although keepers and vet staff say she is one of the smallest giraffe calves they’ve ever seen. Newborn giraffe calves are typically five to six feet tall and weigh 150 to 200 pounds. Exact measurements haven’t been taken, but this calf appears to weigh about 100 pounds and is around five-and-a-half feet tall.

The calf is the seventeenth member of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s reticulated giraffe herd. The calf is the first offspring for mom, Bailey, and the sixth to be sired by dad, Khalid (pronounced cull-EED). Bailey moved to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo on a breeding recommendation in Sept. 2016. CMZoo’s breeding program began in 1954 and has welcomed more than 200 calves since its inception.

Thousands of worldwide viewers witnessed the calf’s birth on Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s live camera feed, which will continue to stream live from the sand stall, where Bailey and the calf will continue to bond for the coming weeks. The live stream of the birth stall, and both outdoor giraffe yard camera feeds, are available at cmzoo.org/giraffecam. The Zoo will continue to provide updates on their social media channels.

The barn will remain closed to guests for at least another day, to give the new calf time to bond with mom. Other members of the CMZoo herd will be available for viewing and feeding in the outside yard from elevated platforms, where guests can get eye-to-eye with and feed lettuce to the herd, weather permitting.

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is not only a leader in the training and health of giraffe in human care, but they are also making a huge difference in conservation of giraffe in the wild. Reticulated giraffe, the subspecies to which CMZoo’s herd belongs, are endangered. There are just over 11,000 mature reticulated giraffe individuals in the wild, and that population is decreasing. According to International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, the reticulated giraffe population has declined by 56% in the last thirty years.

In October and November 2019, CMZoo helped establish a new population of a critically endangered giraffe in Uganda. The Operation Twiga IV team successfully reintroduced 15 Nubian giraffe to Pian Upe Wildlife Reserve, where they haven't existed in nearly 25 years. CMZoo VP of Mission and Programs, Dr. Liza Dadone, assisted with research and anesthesia, and provided care for the giraffe during the translocation. Our contribution to this effort is possible thanks to ongoing support from CMZoo members, guests and donors. Operation Twiga IV is led by Uganda Wildlife Authority with support from Giraffe Conservation Foundation, Colorado State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and other partners from around the world. See a video about the Zoo’s latest field conservation effort, Operation Twiga IV, here.

Through Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s Quarters for Conservation program, by which 75 cents of every Zoo admission is allocated to conservation, guests have helped CMZoo send more than $3 million to support important conservation efforts since 2008. 

Poland's  @ZOO Wrocław  Welcomes a tiny baby sloth on September 15th. This was the first such birth at the zoo. The parents are ten-year-old Celina and fourteen-year-old Apollo. The sloth's sex is not yet known.

It's a triple header and ZooBorns invites you to "Squee"-For-Three. This video features the baby Tiger trio at  @Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society , A Colubus Monkey infant at  @Gladys Porter Zoo , and The The Living Desert's recently emerged Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby.

Taronga Zoo Sydney is proud to announce the birth of a very cute, very playful Australian sea-lion pup who made her first splash today at Taronga’s Seal Bay and is calling on the public to help name the new arrival.

The female Australian sea-lion pup was born during the early morning of Wednesday the 30^th of July to experienced Mother Nala and Father Charlie. This is Nala and Charlie’s second pup together, following the successful birth of Torre a male Australian sea-lion pup who was born in late 2018.

“Weighing in at only 7kg at birth, the little pup has increased not only in weight but has shown a massive increase in confidence over the past week. She is now constantly swimming and playing in the water, which is the type of progress we would like to see at this age” says Marine Mammals Unit Supervisor Brad McKenzie.

“We are thrilled that she is going to be out on display these spring school holidays. At the moment she is learning to vocalise and although I may be biased, but it is probably one of most adorable sounds ever!” say Mckenzie

All births at Taronga are considered significant and special moments, but the recent birth of this Australian sea-lion pup is not only incredible news for Taronga and their breeding program but is wonderful news for this native marine species.

Australian Sea-lion numbers in the wild continue to decline due to isolated populations, over-fishing and entanglement in fishing debris. That is why on this special occasion Taronga is calling on the public to help name their latest, but not so tiniest addition with the launch of seal pup naming competition.

The public will get to choose from two names; Amalie which is a tribute to the pup’s late Grandfather and Nala’s Father Mallie, or Kailani which is of Hawaiian origin and translates to sea and sky. The entry with the most meaningful reason behind their name selection will win a family pass to Taronga valued at $152 and a seal encounter and meet and greet with one of Taronga’s Marine Mammal Keepers. For more information, how to enter and T&C’s simply visit www.taronga.org.au/sealpupcomp

The pup and her mother Nala can now be seen throughout the day at Taronga Zoo Sydney’s Seal Bay at the Greater Southern Ocean Precinct these spring school holidays, where the pup will be playfully and utterly adorably exploring her new surroundings.

Spring has sprung early at Taronga Western Plains Zoo with the birth of a male Spider Monkey baby on 24 August 2020.

The baby boy was born overnight with keepers arriving at work to see mother Jai doting over her newborn. This is the second baby for Jai and father Pedro, with their first baby Isadore born in October 2017.

“Jai was a natural mother first time around and is clearly still a calm mother taking caring for her second baby in her stride,” said Primate Keeper Sasha Brook.

“We are really happy with the maternal behaviours Jai is displaying and because we have a good rapport with her we are able to get up close to check on the baby and how it is doing and we are very pleased to see him doing well,” said Sasha.

Spider Monkey babies cling on to their mothers with an amazing grip and suckle as needed for the first few months of their lives. After approximately three to four months the babies become more active and move to dorsal riding on the back of their mother and start exploring a little more.

“Visitors to the Zoo may find it difficult to see the new arrival at present as he is clinging to his mum’s tummy however, when they move to dorsal riding they are easier to see.”

“There are now six youngsters on the Spider Monkey island including the most recent baby born into the group and we are hopeful there is another baby on the way,” said Sasha.

“It is really amazing to see the different ages in the group now and the watch the juveniles interact with the adults. Pedro is particularly good with the youngsters and is often observed playing with them.”

The Black-handed Spider Monkey conservation breeding program at Taronga Western Plains Zoo has now welcomed four females and two males since the arrival of Pedro the breeding male from France in 2014.

“Having another male born into the group is really exciting, it widens the genetic diversity in the group which benefits the regional conservation breeding program.”

“One day once he is mature he may move to another Zoo and sire babies of his own,” said Sasha.

Black-handed Spider Monkeys are found in Mexico and throughout Central America and are classified as Endangered with habitat loss the primary cause of their decline.

In the late afternoon of Tuesday, July 14, 2020 The Toronto Zoo welcomed an endangered female red panda cub, affectionately known as #BabyRed, and they need YOUR help to give her a name! Beginning Saturday, September 19, 2020 – in celebration of International Red Panda Day - through Tuesday, September 29, 2020 at 11:59 pm vote at torontozoo.com for your favorite from the selected names below:

Ada - meaning first daughter, happy, prosperous, adored
Adira - meaning strong
Apple - mom's favorite treat
Kenna - meaning born from fire

ZooBorns will cast a vote on your behalf as well! Watch this behind-the-scenes "A Day In The Life Of A Keeper" video and vote in the comments. We'll tally up the votes and submit the most popular name to Toronto Zoo.

Their ungulates team went through 1000+ submissions from the public and chose the name Nyah, which is Swahili for goal or purpose. This is such an apt name for this precious calf who has a very special purpose – connecting with Auckland Zoo’s visitors as well as advocating and raising awareness for her species in the wild.

In this video with ungulates keeper Gemma you can see the calf venture out with mum Jamila into the African Savannah habitat for the first time, and learn how zoo visits and donations help Auckland Zoo support rhinoceros in Africa and Asia.