Chester Zoo celebrates arrival of rare baby tapir

A rare Malayan tapir has been born at Chester Zoo – giving a big boost to the conservation of the endangered species.The female calf, which zookeepers have named Nessa, arrived to parents Margery (10) and Betong (10), weighing just 9kg. It followed a 13-month-long (391-day) pregnancy.Fewer than 2,500 Malayan tapirs are estimated to remain on the planet and Chester Zoo is one of just two British zoos currently caring for them, making Nessa’s arrival all the more significant.

Mike Jordan, Director of Animal and Plants at Chester Zoo, said: “We’re over the moon that Margery has delivered a healthy female calf – a birth that marks an important moment in our efforts to prevent the extinction of this wonderfully charismatic but sadly endangered species.“The Malayan tapir is a species that’s under enormous pressure – its numbers have crashed over the course of the past four decades to frighteningly low levels, with hunting and habitat destruction being the main threats to its survival.

“Here at Chester Zoo we’re doing all we can to reverse that and carve out a brighter future for the species.

"Margery’s precious calf is a highly significant new arrival who will add valuable new genetics to the European endangered species breeding programme, which is working to ensure a safety net population of Malayan tapirs in conservation zoos like ours, guarding them from extinction.

Chester Zoo says the Malayan tapir is the largest of the world’s four tapir species and is related to both the horse and the rhinoceros.

It is an ‘odd-toed’ animal, having four toes on each front foot and three toes on each back foot.At birth, baby tapirs have distinctive coats featuring a series of spots and stripes.

This patterning is to help camouflage them on the forest floor, but slowly changes over the first six months of life to mirror the unique black and white pattern of their parents.