Rare & endangered animals find new homes in Cornwall during lockdown
Newquay Zoo has welcomed two Visayan warty pigs, an endangered deer, a slender Loris and a Goeldi's monkey
Last updated 25th Mar 2021
Meet the rare and endangered animals that have found new homes at Cornwall's Newquay Zoo during lockdown.
On February 24th two Visayan warty pigs arrived - one male from Yorkshire Wildlife Park called Randy and one female from Bristol Zoo called Ada.
The zoo was already home to two female warty pigs, Dilang and her offspring May, but has welcomed the new pair to create a breeding group.
Visayan warty pigs are classified as Critically Endangered, with sadly what is thought to be fewer than 200 left in the wild.
Newquay Zoo is part of the captive breeding programme for Visayan warty pigs to try and save this species from becoming extinct.
Deputy Curator John Meek, "We have begun to introduce our newest arrivals Randy and Ada to the rest of the group, this will take a little while before they are fully integrated, however once they are we are very hopeful that they will successfully breed so that we can contribute towards the captive breeding programme for this species".
Deputy Curator of Newquay Zoo, John Meek
The zoo also welcomed one of the most endangered species of deer in the world back at the beginning of February.
A female Philippine spotted deer was born to mum, Belle and dad, Alfie.
Native to the Visayan Islands of Panay and Negros in the Philippines these small deer are classified as Endangered with what is thought to be fewer than 2,500 left in the wild, due to hunting and deforestation.
So each birth is extremely important towards the conservation of this species.
A slender loris was born on 23rd February to parents Ribke and Sheldon. They are both experienced parents having given birth to 5 youngsters over the years at the zoo.
Slender loris are a nocturnal species and known for their distinct large eyes.
Classified as a primate, they are native to southern and eastern India and Sri Lanka, however the wild population is on the decline due to 97% of their tropical rainforest habitat lost.
A Goeldi's monkey was born on 1st March to parents Tao and Japura. This is their second youngster after their first was born just before the first lockdown in March 2020.
The breeding of Goeldi's monkey is very important for the captive breeding programme as they are classified as Vulnerable.
Unlike other callithrichids, Goeldi's monkeys will only have one offspring at a time and the parents will share rearing responsibilities.
Newquay Zoo has been closed since January 5th as a result of the third national lockdown to combat the spread of coronavirus.
It will be reopening their gates and welcoming guests back from Monday 12th April, subject to the roadmap guidance at the time.