Officials have announced two recent births at Zoo Boise.
They said a giant elephant shrew baby was born on March 5th and has recently started to venture from its nest. “The gender of the baby is currently unknown until its first veterinary exam within the next few weeks. The baby was born to parents Polaris and Havok,” said Zoo Boise Assistant Director Liz Littrman.
Giant elephant shrews, also called sengis, are a small African mammal about the size of a rat with a long, flexible snout that looks similar to an elephant trunk. Native to eastern Africa, giant elephant shrews live in forests and use their long snouts to forage for insects, fruits, and seeds.
In addition, there is a new wallaby joey at the Zoo. “The female joey has recently made her appearance in the zoo’s Wallaby Walkabout exhibit. The joey was born to parents Kaiya and Bondi. The joey is approximately nine months old and is still spending some time inside her mother’s pouch,” Littman said.
The Wallaby Walkabout currently features seven Bennett’s wallabies; four adult females, two males, and the joey. Wallabies are small marsupials from Australia and related to kangaroos.
Located in Julia Davis Park, Zoo Boise is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily year-round.
