The Denver Zoo welcomed a new four-legged baby to its family last month: a southern tamandua born nearly a month ahead of schedule, the zoo announced Friday.
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The zoo’s newest pup — who has not yet been named — was born to parents Winnie and Santiago in the early morning hours of Sept. 7, Denver Zoo officials said in a post announcing the birth.
“Though this little one arrived nearly a month ahead of schedule, it was born fully developed and at a healthy weight,” zoo officials wrote. “Winnie showed good maternal instincts, but nursing didn’t come quite as naturally to mom and baby at first.”
Now, nearly a month later, the pup is regularly nursing from Winnie, zoo officials said.
Southern tamanduas, also known as lesser anteaters or collar anteaters, are found throughout much of South America, according to the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance. Their long, barbed tongues can easily wind into ant and termite homes, licking up the bugs inside.
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“This little arrival is especially meaningful for Winnie, who lost her first pup last year,” Denver Zoo officials wrote in the post. “Seeing her care for this little one has been incredibly exciting and rewarding for our dedicated teams.”
Winnie and her pup will continue to live “in their cozy nest box” until the baby anteater is ready to latch onto Winnie’s tail and begin to explore, as the pair would naturally do in the wild, zoo officials said. As the pup continues to grow, the zoo’s care team will be able to determine its sex.
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