Rare baby lemur born at Newquay Zoo 

Newquay Zoo has welcomed a new addition - a crowned lemur. 

The baby lemur was born on 25 July to parents Beloha and Xavier. The family group also includes older brothers Boingy and Felix. 

Crowned lemurs get their name from the browny orange fur on top of their heads.

Dave Rich, deputy curator of animals at Newquay Zoo, said: “The baby will cling tightly onto the mum’s back or stomach for the next three or four months, but if you look closely, you’ll be able to see its little head poking out of its mum’s fur.”

The baby will be sexed and named when it’s a little older. As crowned lemurs develop with age, males and females can be differentiated by their colouration.

Females are mostly light grey with a pale orange crown, while males are reddish brown with a more obvious orange and black crown.

Crowned lemurs are classified as an endangered species.

In their native range of northern Madagascar, their numbers are decreasing due to habitat loss through forest fires, logging and land development.

While most live in four protected areas, these reserves are fragmented, restricting their range and ability to breed.

Newquay Zoo is part of the conservation charity Wild Planet Trust, which is helping to stop species decline. The new baby is a success for this rare species.