New baby anteater doing well at Santa Ana Zoo
The public is starting to get glimpses of the newest resident at the Santa Ana Zoo in Prentice Park: a baby giant anteater.
Born Nov. 26, the little one is now about 10 pounds, a far cry from the 100 to 130 pounds an adult weights. The baby was born at about 3.5 pounds, and momma is likely noticing the growth spurt. She’ll continue to carry her pup on her back for the next year.
Staff doesn’t know yet the sex of their new charge, Zoo Manager Ethan Fisher said. “There’s not much to see.”
But while the staff gets that sorted out, it also will decide how to chose a name. In the past, the zoo has used contests, allowed donors to chose, or has drawn from the language of where an animal is found in the wild to pick a name.
Mom is Heesoo of Troy and father is Peter.
Young anteaters typically spend a year or two with mom – boys usually leave the nest after about a year while daughters often stay close by until mom gets pregnant again. Anteaters generally are solitary folk in the wild.
This little one ultimately will be moved to another facility in North America – the Santa Ana Zoo is part of a collaborative conservation effort. Previous successful offspring moved on to live in Fresno and San Antonio.
The anteater exhibit in the Tierra de las Pampas area of the zoo opened in 2010; Heesoo and Peter are the original residents. They emigrated from a conservation facility in Ghana, a nice addition of new genetics in the collaborative, Fisher said.
Heesoo decides when she wants to venture out with her baby into the public-view enclosure, Fisher said. She prefers warm, sunny days so he suggested visitors check the weather and if she’s inside try circling back to the enclosure after visiting more of the zoo.
Anteater tidbits
- Giant anteaters are native to Central and South America.
- They live in grassy plains and the border of the rain forests.
- They eat ants, termites and other insects in the wild; at the zoo they get a smoothie of insect protein and fruits and vegetables.
- The Santa Ana Zoo’s baby anteater is two months old; UCI’s anteater mascot is 54 years old.
- A couple of water polo players spearheaded the campaign to choose an anteater as the new university’s mascot – winning a Nov. 30, 1965 vote with a 56% tally.
Source: Santa Ana Zoo and UC Irvine Athletics
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