The Oregon Zoo flock is 3 years old yesterday. They flamingrow up so fast!

More on the chicks here: https://www.oregonzoo.org/news/2019/07/flock-way-baby-flamingo-chicks-learn-walk

Endangered Northwest species gets a head start at the zoo's turtle conservation lab

Ten tiny northwestern pond turtles have arrived at the Oregon Zoo’s conservation lab. The zoo is “head-starting” the endangered reptiles, caring for them until next spring when they will be large enough to have a fighting chance in the wild. 

Visitors can watch the hatchlings grow inside the zoo’s Nature Exploration Station.

“The hatchlings are especially vulnerable at this stage,” said Sara Morgan, senior keeper for the zoo’s Great Northwest area. “They’re smaller than a walnut — so tiny, a bullfrog can gobble them up right out of the nest.”  

Young orangutans like Jolene, born April 13, 2022 at Oregon Zoo, are completely dependent on their moms for food and getting around during their first two years of life. The bond between an orangutan mom and her baby is one of the closest of any species.

See all the rest of Jolene’s ZooBorns appearances:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAXsWqaXAto

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtDcZVXUV3w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9KTnnrh1vk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUxOVF82myg

Oregon Zoo’s one-month-old orangutan Jolene met her dad Bob for the first time! With May sunshine finally in the forecast, Jolene and her parents are spending more time in their outdoor habitat. Visitors to the zoo should be able to catch a glimpse of the youngster on most days, though the choice is always up to her mom.

Kitra’s 3-week-old baby is named for her ‘flaming locks of auburn hair’

After a few weeks of consideration, care staff have selected a name for orangutan Kitra’s new baby. Inspired by the line in the Dolly Parton classic that goes, “Your beauty is beyond compare / with flaming locks of auburn hair,” she will be called Jolene.

“Because we’re giving Kitra and her baby plenty of room to bond, we were unable to tell if she’d had a boy or a girl until recently,” said Kate Gilmore, who oversees the zoo’s primate area. “Once we confirmed she was a girl, our keeper team knew right away what they wanted to call her. They’ve been playing the song on repeat ever since!”

Orangutan Mom Kitra and her nearly 2-week-old infant share some cuddles at Oregon Zoo.

Learn more about Kitra and her baby at ZooBorns.com:

https://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2022/04/oregon-zoo-welcomes-new-bornean-orangutan-baby.html

https://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2022/04/kitra-and-her-week-old-baby.html

Oregon Zoo Orangutan Mom Kitra and her week-old baby.

Click here to read the announcement story on ZooBorns:

https://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2022/04/oregon-zoo-welcomes-new-bornean-orangutan-baby.html

First-time mom Kitra and her new baby are doing well, caregivers say

The Oregon Zoo’s primate family grew by a few pounds on Wednesday morning as 20-year-old Bornean orangutan Kitra gave birth to a new baby, adding to the world population of this critically endangered species. 

Caregivers said the newborn entered the world on April 13, at around 11 a.m. The first-time mom and her new arrival are doing well in their behind-the-scenes maternity den. 

A rare African antelope that almost didn’t live past its first few days is now a month old and well on the road to recovery at the Oregon Zoo.

Keepers were thrilled when 7-year-old bontebok Winter gave birth to a new calf Feb. 2. Bonteboks were once considered among the most imperiled mammals on the planet, and each birth is an important step toward ensuring their long-term survival. 

Excitement quickly turned to concern though, when keepers saw that Winter, an inexperienced bontebok mom, was not nursing her newborn. 

Roxy was born a year ago yesterday at the Oregon Zoo. She’s a Rodrigues flying fox, a critically endangered species of bat. Keepers hand-reared her after she was rejected by her mom.

Closer in size to a flying prairie dog — and in appearance to a flying Ewok — this endangered species is native only to Rodrigues, a tiny island in the Indian Ocean about 900 miles east of Madagascar. The bat plays an important ecological role on the island, where few other pollinators or seed dispersers exist.