LONDON, July 23 (DPA / EP) –
Her proud mother in England has offered up a “very special” baby girl, whose birth could unlock a new generation of endangered species.
The five-week-old, whose name has not yet been released, is the first Bornean baby orangutan at Blackpool City Zoo in more than 20 years and has bolstered conservation efforts.
On Saturday, his mother, Jingja, 13, delighted visitors to the Lancashire tourist hotspot by holding him up to the windows, arms outstretched and head bowed.
The orangutan was born as part of the European Endangered Species Program (EEP) and breeders described him as “very special” when they announced his birth in June.
Zoo chief Darren Webster said: “The arrival of this very special baby is fantastic news, not only for us here at Blackpool Zoo, but for the species as well.”
“The Bornean orangutan was classified as endangered in July 2016 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature,” he explained, adding that “this means that this species is now facing a severe risk of extinction in the wild.”
“This makes breeding programs such as the EEP so vital, we hope this will be the start of a new generation of beautiful Bornean orangutans here at Blackpool Zoo.”
Blackpool Zoo has been at the center of several large conservation projects recently.
In May, he welcomed three new lionesses to keep his only lion, Khari, in a new £1.5m (€1.7m) big cat habitat, with a male tiger also joining tiger Alina earlier this month.
In 2019, Emmett, an Asian elephant, appeared in his parade of females in hopes of producing a “multigenerational herd”.
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