Offspring at Chemnitz Zoo
Small ratites romp around the South America facility - New resident in the tropical house
There is more good news to report from the zoo. A total of eleven nandu chicks have hatched in the past few days. The little South American ratites are now scurrying around the enclosure, always under the watchful eye of their father. Rearing the young and breeding is the sole responsibility of the cocks. The hens lay the eggs in the nest and then have nothing more to do with the young.
Other feathered offspring can be found in the pheasantry with the crested quails. There are a total of ten chicks here, all of which hatched in mid-July. In the first few days, the chicks were barely bigger than a bumblebee. Even now, it still takes a little patience and luck to spot the little pheasant birds, which originally come from the west of the USA. The first thing you are likely to see is the cock, which is much more conspicuous than the inconspicuously coloured female due to its magnificent decorative plumage. However, this simple colouring has an important background: it serves as camouflage. It makes the females more difficult to spot, especially during the breeding season. For the same reason, the chicks also have a similar colouring to the mother and it only becomes apparent from the outside who is male and who is female after the first moult.
There is also a new resident in the tropical house. A male two-fingered sloth moved in last week. The 20-year-old "Táta" (meaning dad or father) comes from the Czech zoo in Chemnitz's twin town of Usti nad Labem.
With the experience of a total of 17 paternities, the zoo is naturally also hoping that he will become
Chemnitz Zoo is also hoping that he will be able to win over sloth lady "Kathrin". The first
encounters went without incident.
Opening hours of the zoo in summer: 9 am to 7 pm, last admission 6 pm
Opening hours of the wildlife park in summer: 8 am to 6 pm