Surprise at AquaZoo: sloth born

A sloth cub was born at AquaZoo last Saturday. The birth came as a surprise to the animal caretakers. The newborn is doing well.

The birth was discovered last Saturday by an observant volunteer, under the watchful eye of visitors. "We didn't see this coming," said William Kreijkes, head of animal care at AquaZoo Leeuwarden. "The parents didn't seem so interested in each other before, so we didn't expect this right away. But we are extremely happy about it. Mother and young are doing extremely well so far."

The gender is not yet known. "For now, the cub is staying close to the mother," Kreijkes explains. "As a result, we won't be able to determine the gender for a while."

First birth since arrival of sloths

There have been two-fingered sloths at AquaZoo. The parents of the newborn young are a 7-year-old male and a 13-year-old female. The animals are part of a European management program aimed at maintaining a healthy population of sloths in zoos.

With any luck, visitors can already catch a glimpse of the new addition. Kreijkes: "Sloths sleep a lot and often retreat. They do show themselves when they go looking for food; that happens a few times a day."