Taipei City Zoo borrowed a pair of pangolins from Prague Zoo in the Czech Republic. Last year, they gave birth to a female pangolin baby named Šiška. Earlier this month, they welcomed their second litter, with the baby pangolin in good health, bringing both surprise and joy to the zoo staff.
In April 2022, Taipei City Zoo borrowed a pair of pangolins, “Fruit Baby” (male) and “Throat Lozenge” (female), to breed in Prague. They successfully gave birth to Šiška in February 2023, the first pangolin born in Europe.
Less than two years after giving birth to Šiška, Throat Lozenge delivered another female baby on July 1, becoming the second pangolin born in captivity in Europe. Prague Zoo reported that the baby weighs only 141 grams but gains about 10 grams per day, expected to reach 250 grams by the end of the week. An adult pangolin can weigh up to 6.8 kilograms.
Prague is the second European zoo, after Leipzig in Germany, to have Taiwanese pangolins. Zoo director Miroslav Bobek stated that their primary goal after receiving Fruit Baby and Throat Lozenge in 2022 was to ensure their good health and well-being.
He said, “Of course, we hoped for baby pangolins in the future, but no one expected we would have two within a year and a half.”
Pangolins are challenging to breed in captivity as they require a specific diet including bee larvae and the enclosure must maintain specific humidity and temperature levels.
(Transferred from Central News Agency)