A tiny porcupette was born overnight on April 11th to African crested porcupines, Caleefa and Bristle at Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo.  The prickly new arrival is doing well.
 
Caleefa joined the prickle last October as a Species Survival Plan recommendation for Calgary’s porcupine brothers, Bristle and Rattle.  Caleefa was introduced to both males but it was quickly apparent that Bristle was her chosen mate as the pair settled together quickly.

A white-tailed porcupine has been born at Amersfoort Zoo. The baby can occasionally be seen outside. It is the second porcupette for this mother. The sex of the animal is not yet known. "We hope to get an answer to that soon," says animal caretaker Marc Belt. “We leave the young alone as much as possible. The mother is also very protective of the little one.”

The little porcupine keeps up well with the group and has already taken its first steps outside. “We have made a special staircase for this, so that he or she can easily walk out of the indoor accommodation,” Marc says. The other porcupines are also used to their new inhabitant. “They are often close to each other.”

MORE PHOTOS BELOW THE FOLD

Brookfield, Ill. – On March 19, the Chicago Zoological Society, which manages Brookfield Zoo, welcomed a new addition—a porcupette (baby porcupine) who was born on March 19. The newborn is being handreared by animal care staff after it was observed the porcupette’s mom, 9-year-old Lucia, was not providing her offspring proper maternal care.

The unsexed baby porcupine is thriving and being cared for around the clock by the animal care specialists. Currently, the porcupette is fed a formula, which was developed by CZS’s director of nutrition. As the baby develops, times between each feeding will increase until it is weaned at around 10 weeks old. Once weaned, staff will begin introducing the young porcupine to a diet consisting of a variety of vegetables, including sweet potato, green beans, corn, carrots, spinach, and kale, as well as a nutrient-based biscuit, peanuts, and sunflower seeds.

MORE PHOTOS BELOW!

Don’t be put off by Fofo’s prickly appearance! As his name implies, Smithsonian National Zoo's 8-week-old prehensile-tailed porcupette is as “cute” as can be! Get to know Fofo in this Q+A with Small Mammal House keepers Maria Montgomery and Mimi Nowlin.

Photos: Mimi Nowlin/Smithsonian’s National Zoo

African crested porcupine, Cleo, gave birth to three porcupettes earlier this month at Palm Beach Zoo. The family unit will stay in their outfitted night house for the time being with daily "house call" health care checks by our veterinary team and zoologists. All three newborns are currently happy and healthy, but one of them is growing a bit slower than its siblings. In the wild world, having a “runt” of a litter is not uncommon. Unfortunately, a weaker newborn is much less likely to survive in nature. Here, the runt gets a second chance! Our animal care team is prepared for such situations and made the necessary decision to intervene. He/she is being hand-raised by animal experts with the hopes of being reintroduced to its family when the time is right. Until then, he/she is loving the extra attention from our volunteer porcu-sitters and zoologists.

LOTS MORE PHOTOS BELOW THE FOLD! : Zoologist Jen R

Prehensile-tailed porcupines, like Smithsonian’s National Zoo’s 2-week-old porcupette, are born with the ability to climb! At birth, their quills are soft, but they harden within minutes. The name prehensile means “capable of grasping”; the underside of its tail lacks quills, allowing the porcupine to grip branches with this appendage and navigate the forest canopy with ease.

All is well at ZOO Planckendael in the Netherlands. On Christmas Eve, they welcomed their fifth African Cape Porcupette this year! The baby joins siblings Wafa and Winga, born in February, as well as Willie and Wonka, born in June.

After 25 years without baby porcupettes at Planckendael, the 5 are a most welcome addition. Mom Stekeltje (Stake-el-che), the newborn baby, and siblings Willie and Wonka are bonding and adapting to the new family situation. Once the baby’s sex is known, he or she will receive a “W” name to match those of its siblings.

Despite appearances, porcupines are still fluffy at birth. Their quills harden over the first several weeks of life.

Baby Porcupine Makes Prickly Debut After August Birth At ZSL London Zoo 

Keepers at ZSL London Zoo have shared the first images and footage of an adorable baby porcupine - known as a porcupette - born at the Zoo last month. 

Just in time for World Porcupine Day, June 1, Nashville Zoo revealed THREE PRICKLY SURPRISES!

Three cape porcupines were born at the Zoo on Sunday morning, the 27^th of June! This is Mkali & Jake's second litter of porcupettes and they're doing a great job.

The porcupettes had their first wellness check yesterday and all weighed in around 1 lb.

These three will remain behind the scenes for now but Nashville Zoo will be sure to share when you can see them! Make sure to follow the Zoo on their Social Media Channels.

Photo credit: Kate Johns

Fluffy, spiked, and ready to delight: three new faces at Zoo New England are small in stature but big in the cute factor. The arrival of two scaly-sided merganser ducklings at Franklin Park Zoo and a prehensile-tailed porcupette at Stone Zoo have given Zoo staff and guests alike reason to celebrate this spring.