First ring-tailed lemurs born at Australia Zoo
TWIN LEMURS HAVE been born at Australia Zoo in Queensland, the first ever to be born at the Irwin family’s zoo.
The lemurs (Lemur catta) were born at midday, on Wednesday, 24 August, to mum Spindles and dad Rahona after a four-month ‘courtship’.
“We’re so thrilled about the arrival of these gorgeous new babies,” said Monica Marks, keeper at Australia Zoo’s Africa department, and main carer for the lemurs. “With the dwindling number of ring-tailed lemurs in the wild, it’s so exciting to be able to celebrate the Zoo’s successful breeding program.”
Image: Ben Beaden / Australia Zoo
Monica added that the babies are doing well and have already started to ride on mum’s back to better take in their surroundings.
She said there aren’t exact figures of how many wild lemurs are left, but they are on the endangered list “which means maintaining a healthy and diverse population here at the Zoo is a great way to help provide insurance for future generations.”
Image: Ben Beaden / Australia Zoo
Ring-tilaed lemurs are endemic to the African island of Madagascar, where populations are threatened by habitat loss and deforestation.
The new baby lemurs are currently off display with mum, but Australia Zoo also has 10 new lemurs on Bindi’s Island and a troop of four lemurs on adjacent Lemur Island.
Image: Ben Beaden / Australia Zoo
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