Critically endangered calf puts spring in keepers’ steps!
Keepers at Blackpool Zoo have hailed a fantastic start to the spring baby boom season after the safe arrival of a critically endangered two-humped Bactrian Camel, whose wild cousins are on the brink of extinction.
The male calf was born after a 13-month gestation on March 4th and has been named Clyde by keepers.
He is being reared by his mother, Kara-may who lives with his father Sid in a herd of eight camels at Blackpool. In the coming weeks he will start to venture out in the paddock and meet his relatives.
Spring has certainly sprung at Blackpool Zoo with new babies being born across the park including capybara, squirrel monkeys, lemurs and much more.
Adam Kenyon, Section Head of Large Mammals at Blackpool Zoo, said: “The entire team were delighted when Clyde was born as his species teeters on the brink of extinction in the wild.
“Spring is always a joyous season here at Blackpool Zoo as we welcome new life across all our sections.
“Kara-may has done a fantastic job of rearing Clyde and we are certain he will be a big hit with the public this year.”
Fewer than 600 Bactrian Camels are thought to survive in the wild, with the population decreasing due to habitat loss and hunting by farmers in their native Gobi and Taklimakan deserts of Mongolia and Xinjiang.
Bactrian Camels have two humps, whilst the Dromedary Camel has just one.
ENDS
Picture shows: Clyde Bactrian Camel calf
More information about Blackpool Zoo:
Blackpool Zoo is owned by Parques Reunidos, the second largest European leisure parks operator and a leading world-wide player. The zoo is home to over 1,500 mammals, birds, reptiles and invertebrates set amidst thirty-two acres of mature woodland and lakes.
The zoo’s signature animals include elephants, giraffes, big cats, gorillas, orang-utans, sea lions, primates, zebras and kangaroos. It is open every day of the year, apart from Christmas Day, from 10am.
For further information please contact:
Paula Holden or Abi Blundell at ICG on 07772268378 or email [email protected] or [email protected]