Posted April 9, 2020 in New Arrivals
Endangered deer is born!
On the 25th March Colchester Zoo welcomed an adorable male Philippine spotted deer born to mum Autumn and dad Bongat!
Autumn and Bongat were brought in from Liberec Zoo and Edinburgh Zoo respectively in the hope they would pair up and breed as genetically they are a very good match. It is great news that they have successfully bred and have now welcomed their first calf.
After arriving, the fawn was quick to its feet and was exploring the paddock. Autumn is proving to be a relaxed but attentive mum. The little one continues to spend lots of time outside with the rest of his family and it won’t be long until he is introduced to the Visayan warty pigs who he shares his home with. The keepers are yet to name the new arrival as they are waiting to see what his personality traits are so watch this space!
This is wonderful news for the zoo and brings such joy in these hard times we are facing. This is also amazing news for the species which is currently listed as endangered on the IUCN red list with them being one of the rarest and most narrowly distributed mammals in the world!
Our Philippine spotted deer share their home with a group of Visayan warty pigs who are another species home to the Philippine’s which is also at risk with an IUCN red list status of critically endangered.
We will continue to update you on this bundle of joy over the coming weeks.
