Another new Omaha zoo baby: Aardvark calf on display in Desert Dome (photo & video)

http://www.omaha.com/living/another-new-omaha-zoo-baby-aardvark-calf-on-display-in/article_b98f262c-7fea-11e4-9866-2bf6856826b6.html




HENRY DOORLY ZOO & AQUARIUM
An aardvark calf, who was born Oct. 1 and whose gender is still unknown, is now on display inside the Desert Dome.

POSTED: TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2014 3:31 PM
By Chris Peters / World-Herald staff writer

Two weeks after announcing a slew of newborns, the Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium is welcoming another newbie.

An aardvark calf, who was born Oct. 1 and whose gender is still unknown, is now on display inside the Desert Dome. It joins a trio of lion cubs, a baby gibbon, a young otter and a giraffe calf as new animals on display at the zoo.

Video: http://www.omaha.com/video-aardvark-calf/video_da9e55a6-8001-11e4-b2f3-fb46cd837ce6.html

The calf weighs just more than 12 pounds and is on exhibit separate from its parents in the Namib Desert portion of the dome. It is being hand-raised by animal health staff members at the zoo since its mother has shown an inability to raise her young in the past.

Aardvarks are nocturnal and rely on other senses like hearing and smell to find food and avoid predators. Their long snouts, which contain sensory pads and hairs near the nostrils, helps them find insects like termites and ants in cracks and crevices in the dark.

FULL story at link.