Belgium: Baby aardvark fights for survival in Antwerp Zoo
- 11 years ago
Looking like something out of a science fiction film, an aardvark was born at the Antwerp Zoo in Belgium during the second week of May. Until its sex is known, the small pinkish creature has not been given a name. What is known is its name will start with the letter 'O,' as the names of all newborns at the Antwerp Zoo in 2013 will start with this letter.
The wrinkly baby is the fifth child for mother Curly. Raising a young aardvark, known as a cub, is often difficult for the mother. Mothers begin to produce milk for cubs rather slowly. Moreover, aardvarks are infamous for treating their newborns roughly.
To increase the young aardvark's chances of survival, zoo caretakers only place the cub next to its mother every three hours to drink milk. The rest of the time it stays in an incubator and drinks a special formula, often fed by humans. Weighing only about 1.5 kilograms at birth, its weight has already increased to more than 2.1 kilograms.
An aardvark is a medium-sized burrowing mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. Usually active at night, they eat mainly ants and termites. They can live up to 24 years in captivity. There are currently 45 aardvarks in zoos throughout Europe, and around 30 in the United States.
The English word 'aardvark' comes from the Afrikaans word 'erdvark,' meaning 'earth pig.' The name likely originated from the animal's ability to dig and burrow beneath the ground and resemblance to a pig.
The wrinkly baby is the fifth child for mother Curly. Raising a young aardvark, known as a cub, is often difficult for the mother. Mothers begin to produce milk for cubs rather slowly. Moreover, aardvarks are infamous for treating their newborns roughly.
To increase the young aardvark's chances of survival, zoo caretakers only place the cub next to its mother every three hours to drink milk. The rest of the time it stays in an incubator and drinks a special formula, often fed by humans. Weighing only about 1.5 kilograms at birth, its weight has already increased to more than 2.1 kilograms.
An aardvark is a medium-sized burrowing mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. Usually active at night, they eat mainly ants and termites. They can live up to 24 years in captivity. There are currently 45 aardvarks in zoos throughout Europe, and around 30 in the United States.
The English word 'aardvark' comes from the Afrikaans word 'erdvark,' meaning 'earth pig.' The name likely originated from the animal's ability to dig and burrow beneath the ground and resemblance to a pig.