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Clouded leopard cubs
Two rare and endangered clouded leopard cubs are being taken care of at a National Zoo facility in northern Virginia.
The whiskered cubs were born Tuesday, the first such births there in 16 years. Zoo officials say breeding the animals is a challenge because when a pair are put together to mate, the male often kills the female. Mothers also often accidentally or intentionally kill their cubs.
In this case, the cubs were quickly removed from their mother after birth.
Clouded leopards are native to Southeast Asia, but are vulnerable to extinction because of hunting and deforestation. They weigh about a half pound when born and grow to as much as 50 pounds. Their tails account for half of their length.
The new cubs will not be on public display.
--Associated Press";
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By Jasmin Aline Persch, contributor
Gorilla baby
This western lowland gorilla baby had a rough start to life. His mother, Monifa, rejected him after bringing him into the world Dec. 8, 2008. During surrogate training, his auntie, Bawang, appeared more adept for motherhood, attempting to lick him through a barrier mesh separating the two. Primate and veterinary staff at the San Francisco Zoo have been hand-rearing the rare gorilla. (Check out the latest photos and videos.)
Western lowland gorillas as well as the cross river variety retain the critically endangered status on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. A census released by the Wildlife Conservation Society in August 2008 discovered that a more than expected 125,000-plus western lowland gorillas inhabit parts of the northern region of the Republic of Congo. Their cousins, the eastern lowland and mountain types, are merely endangered.
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Aardvark cub
An aardvark cub with 4-inch ears and no hair was born Dec. 8, 2008 at the Detroit Zoo, which described the newborn as \"hideously cute.\" Although mama Rachaael is making a fine mother, zoo staff are lending a hand occasionally as aardvarks are extraordinarily clumsy and see poorly. The cub has been named Amani, meaning \"peace\" in Swahili.
Aardvarks' strange name comes from Afrikaans, meaning \"earth pig.\" The mammals use their freakishly large ears to listen for termites and their anteater-like snouts to vaccuum up the delectable insects. Their nozzles come complete with long, sticky tongues that can reach up to 12 inches.";
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Koala joey
Kirrhi debuted Dec. 12, 2008, and has been spotted munching on eucalyptus on her own. After her April 3 birth, she spent six months in her mother's pouch. That's where newborn koalas starting life at less than an inch long develop.
Koalas once faced extinction because hunters prized their fur. The Australian government's ban on killing the marsupials, cousins to kangaroos, has helped their survival, yet their population remains threatened. Wild koalas mainly live in eucalyptus forests in eastern Australia. Their slow metabolism rate requires them to sleep a whopping 18 to 20 hours a day to conserve energy.";
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Giant panda twins
Giant panda twins born early July 2008 became the first births of their kind since the devastating earthquake in China. Their mother, named Guo Guo, delivered the cubs at the Bifengxia Giant Panda Base. She and other pandas were transplanted there after the temblor caused havoc on their home, the Wolong Nature Reserve.
The preserve is key to China's efforts to save the endangered giant panda, which is considered an unofficial national mascot. Many of the roughly 180 pandas who have been bred in captivity had resided at Wolong. Only about 1,600 remain in the wild, mostly in the Sichuan province. Click here for a related story: Panda from China quake zone gives birth
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Gray wolf pups
Seven gray wolf puppies debuted at the Red River Zoo in Fargo, N.D., mid-June 2008. A few pups, which showed signs of stage fright, had to be taken back indoors. But the litter is getting more comfortable in their new outdoor enclosure and with onlookers, according to a blog about the wolf puppies.
Gray wolves, which inhabit northern U.S. states, Canada, Russia and some eastern European countries, span the largest range of any land mammal, other than humans. While Mexican gray wolves, which have been reintroduced in New Mexico and Arizona, remain endangered, other populations may lose their threatened status.";
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Two-toed sloth baby
Central Florida Zoo staff are one of a few U.S. facilities to hand-raise a two-toed sloth baby. After a normal birth early May 2008, the infant had failed to nurse naturally with its mother. The baby became weak from dehydration and fell off its mother, so zookeepers intervened. Central Florida Zoo staff report that the baby is doing well.
Sloths are the world's slowest-moving mammals. Two-toed sloths thrive in Central and South America. But some types of three-toed sloths, which are more sluggish than their two-toed cousins, are endangered due to hunting, habitat loss and attacks by pet dogs. Also, the creatures turn up as accidental road kill. All sloths are treedwellers after their ground forefathers went extinct 10,000 years ago. Click here for a related story: This zoo baby is a real sloth! ";
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White rhino calf
A southern white rhinoceros made its public debut June 4, 2008. The spunky female, which remains unnamed, was seen tearing across its enclosure at the Dublin Zoo in Ireland. The mother, Ashanti, kept a close watch on her calf.
White rhinos are the second-largest land mammals after the elephant. Once facing extinction, the species remains critically endangered. Telling a white rhino from a black one is a guessing game -- since both are gray in color! It's unclear how white rhinos received their name. Both white and black rhinoceroses mainly live in eastern and southern Africa while other varieties reside in Asia. Video: White rhino calf meets the public ";
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Wallaby joey
Smithsonian National Zoo officials glimpsed a little head poking out of the pouch of a Tammar wallaby in March 2008 (although this shot was snapped in May). Staff believe the joey is about 7 months old now. After birth, wallabies crawl into their mothers' pouches, where they nurse and develop for several months -- much like their larger marsupial cousins, the kangaroos.
Zookeepers are waiting for an opportunity to determine the joey's sex and weight, but don't want to disturb the bond between the baby and the mother just yet. Some wallabies are considered endangered, but the Tammar variety retain the near-threatened status.";
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Addax kid
Fola, the 3-day-old addax shown here, is nuzzled by her mother, Roxanne. This type of antelope is one of the world's rarest mammals. Two addax kids (the term for antelope babies) were born at the Louisville Zoo in April 2008. Roxanne and Patella (\"Ella\" for short) are \"wonderful moms,\" according to zookeepers. They pridefully groom and clean Fola, meaning \"honor,\" and Safiya, meaning \"pure.\"
These kids are part of a breeding program by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which currently estimates the nationwide addax population at 200. Thanks to captive conservation efforts, the endangered species, which was once considered extinct in the wild, are still in existence. From Africa's Sahara Desert, only about 250 addax live in the wild, where they go most of their lives without drinking water, instead tapping hydration from dew and consumed plants.";
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Jaguar cub
This playful black jaguar, just two months old, still needs a name. The male cub, born in Lima's Huachipa zoo in March 2008, is the third captive birth of his kind in Peru.
Bulkier than leopards, jaguars have big heads and stumpy legs capped with large footpads. The Central and South American cat, which is threatened by deforestation and hunting, is on the endangered species list.";
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Sumatran tiger triplets
In mid-March 2008, a Sumatran tiger cub was spotted on a video monitoring system at the San Francisco Zoo. Days later, a closer inspection of the tiger's den revealed two more cubs. Tiger parents Leanne and George are part of a breeding program to boost the endangered species' presence in facilities at the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
About 200 Sumatran tigers live in zoos around the world. The tiger triplets are the first of their kind born at the San Francisco Zoo since 1956. Between 400 to 500 of the subspecies found on the Indonesian island of Sumatra remain in the wild. All tigers are endangered.";
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Lesser spot-nosed guenon baby
This lesser spot-nosed guenon baby literally bonded with mom from its February 2008 birth. It was so attached, in fact, that Central Florida Zoo staff couldn't determine its gender. Until now. Turns out, it's a girl! In a public contest, she had received the name, Makena, meaning \"happy one\" in a Kenyan language.
Makena is just one of less than 25 of the monkey breed exhibited at American Zoo and Aquarium Association facilites. Named for the white oval patch on its nose, the lesser spot-nosed guenon struggles in the wild due to habitat loss and hunting for its meat.";
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Giraffe calf
Most of us will never achieve the height of this giraffe calf: Nearly 6 feet. The tallest land animals' necks alone can extend 7 feet and weigh as much as 500 pounds. Giraffe calf Katie, born at the Fort Worth Zoo in January 2008, grew an inch a day during her first week and could one day tower as high as 15 feet.
Weighing 96 pounds at birth, she could tip the scale upward of 1,500 pounds later in life. Found in the dry savannahs of Africa, giraffes remain pretty common in the wild. While adults can fend off predators, calves can fall victim to lions, hyena, leopards and wild dogs.";
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Polar bear cub
In January 2008, polar bear Vera was seen carrying around her cub, born in December, in her jaws at the Nuremberg zoo in Germany. Staff members were already concerned since earlier that week, Vilma, another polar bear at the facility, had devoured her two offspring because they were sick. Now Flocke, meaning \"snowflake\" in German, may become the second celebrity polar bear cub to be handraised in Germany. Animal activists, who prefer to let nature take its course, were outraged when the Berlin Zoo decided to save now-cub star Knut from a neglectant mother.
Zoo officials argued that protection could help boost the numbers of the largest land carnivores on Earth who are threatened by global warming and hunting. Click here for a related story: Here's Flocke, Germany's latest polar bear cub
";
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Giant panda cub
Precious! That's how this giant panda cub's name translates from Mandarin. Following Chinese tradition, the August 2007 baby was christened Zhen Zhen (pronounced \"jun jun\") at 100 days of age. San Diego Zoo's Bai Yun is also the proud mother of three other giant pandas.
Zoos are working diligently to breed the beloved black-and-white bears (genetic studies confirmed panda bears are, in fact, bears). About 180 giant pandas live in captivity. Endangered due to loss of their bamboo habitat and poaching, only about 1,600 exist in the wild. Click here for a related story: It's a girl! San Diego's panda cub is a she
";
// END editorial data