A RARE foal whose breed was extinct for 39 years has been born at a Hampshire zoo.
Marwell Zoo is celebrating the arrival of a tiny Przewalski’s foal, which will join their harem in the valley field.
These horses were extinct in the wild from 1969 until 2008 and the breed is classed as endangered.
The new arrival foal was born to mother, Tsetseg and father Nogger on Saturday, April 15, and is reported to be doing well.
Katie Foulkes, Assistant animal keeper, Hoofstock, said: “Tsetseg is a very good mum and her foal has been seen feeding well.
“She is separating herself and the foal from the group slightly, which is perfectly normal, and shows that she is being very protective.”
The foal will go on to be an important part of the European Ex-Situ Breeding Programme.
The new foal can be seen alongside last year’s new arrival Basil, in the zoo's valley field, which can be seen from the balcony of Café Graze.
Przewalski’s foals weigh between 25 and 30kg at birth.
They can stand and walk within an hour of being born, and within a few weeks are able to start grazing.
All of the Przewalski’s horses alive today are descended from just 12 captive individuals after the population in the wild was declared extinct.
Przewalski’s horses are now listed as endangered on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species with populations increasing thanks to zoo breeding programmes.
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