We are delighted to announce that our aardvark family has grown! On 23rd November, aardvarks OQ and Koos, welcomed a new little arrival.
Although this is OQ and Koos’ first young together, OQ is an experienced mum, with this new arrival being her 12th offspring! The Animal Care Team have kept a close eye on mum and her new arrival over the last month, and OQ has proven to be an excellent and caring parent.
Koos arrived back in October 2023 from Chester Zoo as part of a breeding recommendation, in the hope that he would successfully raise young with our resident female, OQ. We are delighted to see that Koos has settled in really well and the pair have managed to welcome another addition to the group, helping towards the conservation of this species.
Aardvarks are currently listed as ‘Least Concern’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. These animals are easily recognisable by their long snout and pointy ears with their name meaning ‘Earth Pig’ in Afrikaans. Their short, powerful limbs with shovel-shaped claws, make them excellent diggers and in the wild their burrows can be up to 13 metres long!
An aardvark’s tongue is around 30cm long and is used to catch termites and ants. They can eat up to 50,000 insects each night! Aardvarks such as ours, are nocturnal which is why our group can usually be seen sleeping in their burrow during the day. However, if you are lucky, you may be able to spot them out and about during your visit.
