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Baby dwarf hippopotamus from Basel Zoo
For the first time in 14 years, a baby dwarf hippopotamus was born at Basel Zoo in Switzerland. This event happened on March 18, but because of the cool weather, the mother and her cub were kept indoors all this time.
Photo: Zoo Basel
But just the other day, the mother, a 9-year-old female Ashaki (Ashaki) and her baby, who was named Lani (Lani), finally released into an open aviary with a swimming pool. Ashaki and Lani can be seen every day from 10:00 to 15:00 - only in warm, sunny weather, as the water in the pool is still quite cool, according to the zoo website.
“These precautions were taken on purpose, as the cub is still very small and can catch a cold while bathing in cool water,” says the senior caretaker of the Basel Zoo. When Lani was born, she weighed just over 5 kg and was the size of a rabbit. Now it has grown significantly and weighs as much as 16 kilograms.
It is worth noting that the adult dwarf hippopotamus (Latin Hexaprotodon liberiensis) weighs about 200 kg, which is an order of magnitude less than ordinary hippos, whose weight can reach up to 4500 kg. Little Lani gradually begins to switch to the usual food for hippos: she enjoys feasting on the leaves of plants planted in her enclosure.
The birth of Lani was one of the most joyful news for the Basel Zoo, as these animals are on the verge of extinction in the wild. Before Lani in the Swiss zoo dwarf hippo was born in 1997 and now he lives in the Spanish zoo Cabarceno Zoo. The father of the baby was a 7-year-old male named Aldo. Previously, Ashaki and Aldo experienced mutual hostility, but over time the relationship between them has improved.
Ashaki arrived at the Basel Zoo from Singapore in 2008. She was born from a pair of wild hippos, so the offspring from her has a special value. Aldo came to Basel in 2008. The couple still have a good relationship, which gives hope for new offspring next year.
The dwarf hippopotamus, or Liberian dwarf hippopotamus (local names are nigbwe or mwe-mwe) is a herbivorous mammal from the hippopotamus family (Latin Hippopotamidae). It lives in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Côte d’Ivoire (states in West Africa), where it leads a semi-aquatic, solitary lifestyle. Unlike ordinary hippos, dwarf hippos do not form flocks and do not protect their territories.
Source: zoopicture.ru
Photo: Zoo Basel
But just the other day, the mother, a 9-year-old female Ashaki (Ashaki) and her baby, who was named Lani (Lani), finally released into an open aviary with a swimming pool. Ashaki and Lani can be seen every day from 10:00 to 15:00 - only in warm, sunny weather, as the water in the pool is still quite cool, according to the zoo website.
“These precautions were taken on purpose, as the cub is still very small and can catch a cold while bathing in cool water,” says the senior caretaker of the Basel Zoo. When Lani was born, she weighed just over 5 kg and was the size of a rabbit. Now it has grown significantly and weighs as much as 16 kilograms.
It is worth noting that the adult dwarf hippopotamus (Latin Hexaprotodon liberiensis) weighs about 200 kg, which is an order of magnitude less than ordinary hippos, whose weight can reach up to 4500 kg. Little Lani gradually begins to switch to the usual food for hippos: she enjoys feasting on the leaves of plants planted in her enclosure.
The birth of Lani was one of the most joyful news for the Basel Zoo, as these animals are on the verge of extinction in the wild. Before Lani in the Swiss zoo dwarf hippo was born in 1997 and now he lives in the Spanish zoo Cabarceno Zoo. The father of the baby was a 7-year-old male named Aldo. Previously, Ashaki and Aldo experienced mutual hostility, but over time the relationship between them has improved.
Ashaki arrived at the Basel Zoo from Singapore in 2008. She was born from a pair of wild hippos, so the offspring from her has a special value. Aldo came to Basel in 2008. The couple still have a good relationship, which gives hope for new offspring next year.
The dwarf hippopotamus, or Liberian dwarf hippopotamus (local names are nigbwe or mwe-mwe) is a herbivorous mammal from the hippopotamus family (Latin Hippopotamidae). It lives in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Côte d’Ivoire (states in West Africa), where it leads a semi-aquatic, solitary lifestyle. Unlike ordinary hippos, dwarf hippos do not form flocks and do not protect their territories.
Source: zoopicture.ru
