Baby Royal Antelope Makes Public Debut

royal-antelope

Spring may have arrived a little early at the San Diego Zoo. A few weeks ago, zookeepers heralded the birth of a baby hippo. Now, they are welcoming this baby royal antelope.
Here the newborn is seen nursing with zookeeper Janet Hawes. The royal antelope was actually born on January 20, but concerns over the animal’s health delayed the announcement.

Even though royal antelopes are the smallest antelope species, the newborn was especially tiny, weighing a mere 10 ounces when it was born. After regular bottle feedings five times a day, the antelope is now up to a healthy 17 ounces.
The royal antelope (Neotragus pygmaeus) is native to a stretch of rainforest in West Africa stretching from Ghana to Sierra Leone. Because this animal is nocturnal and tends to shy away from humans, its conservation status is difficult to assess.

source : http://news.discovery.com/animals/baby-royal-antelope-zoo-110210.html