13/04/16 Ring-tail lemurs. Spring is in the air at a wildlife park in Staffordshire, with two of their endangered ring-tail lemurs both giving birt
13/04/16 Ring-tail lemurs. Spring is in the air at a wildlife park in Staffordshire, with two of their endangered ring-tail lemurs both giving birth over the last few days. Staff at Peak Wildlife Park near Leek said they were thrilled when the lemurs had offspring just days apart, and have a strong suspicion that a third is about a become a mother soon. ItÕs the first time that the creatures, which are native to southern Madagascar, have successfully bred at the park. Keeper Kalisha Sandland said: ÒWhen the babies were born they would have only weighed around 3oz so they are really small. ÒBoth Evie and Princess, as the lemurs are called, are doing a fantastic job as first time mums. ÒTheyÕll keep the babies tucked up on their chest for another week or so and then they will be carried on their backs, so itÕs easy for visitors to see them.Ó Meanwhile in the wallaby enclosure several of the animals have youngsters, called joeys, which are carried around in a pouch on the motherÕs stomach. ÒThe wallabies are a couple of months old now, so they are poking their little heads out to see whatÕs going on,Ó said Kalisha. ÒEveryone says how cute they look and the wallabies are very relaxed so itÕs easy to spot the joeys.Ó The park is home to several other species of wildlife, including penguins, meerkats, capybara and the highly endangered Visayan warty pigs. MORE INFO: Source: Ring-tailed lemurs are considered endangered by the IUCN Red List because its population density is very low. There is a suspected population reduction of around 50% in this species over a three generation period (36 years, estimating the generation length to be 12 years). Visayan warty pigs are listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List because it is currently undergoing a drastic population decline, estimated to be more than 80% over a period of three generations (estimated to be about 21 years), inferred from the apparent disappearance of several popu
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