Belfast Zoo welcomes new arrivals ahead of bank holiday weekend

Belfast Zoo has welcomed several new arrivals ahead of the bank holiday weekend.

The latest newborns include critically endangered cotton top tamarin twins, an endangered crowned lemur, prairie dog pups and penguin chicks.

The zoo says the cotton top tamarin twins are a huge cause for celebration, as these miniature monkeys are one of the world's most endangered primates - with less than 2,000 breeding animals estimated to be left in the wild.

They're native to a small region in Colombia, but due to deforestation only 5% of their original habitat remains.

Further breeding success has also seen the arrival of an endangered crowned lemur which was born on 24 May to mother Mikasika and father Lex.

Crowned lemurs originate from the forests of northern Madagascar with numbers in the wild under threat due to habitat loss.

Elsewhere in the zoo, the pitter patter of penguin feet were first heard on 11 May when keepers welcomed the first gentoo penguin chicks of the season.

Finally, the zoo has also announced the arrival of several black-tailed prairie dog pups.

Making their debut by emerging from their burrows for the first time earlier this month, it's estimated that they were born in early April - prairie dog pups need about six weeks to grow before they are ready to come above ground.

Black-tailed prairie dogs are a species of ground squirrel who live in large underground burrows, called ‘towns’.

These extensive tunnels contain separate chambers for sleeping, rearing young and for waste.

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