Chester Zoo in the UK is celebrating the birth of one of the rarest animals on the planet, a male onager foal named Jasper.
The zoo is leading part of a European-wide conservation breeding programme to safeguard the onager, an equid species of which there are just 600 remaining in the wild.
Chester Zoo is the only zoo in the UK, and one of very few in the world, to work with the onager due to the challenges of breeding and caring for them.
Related to the domestic donkey, the onager is an Asiatic wild ass. They live in two small, protected areas in Iran and have suffered from illegal poaching, overgrazing, drought and disease.
Onager foal arrives at UK zoo
The species is listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), meaning it faces a very high chance of extinction.
“Onagers are themost threatenedequid species in the world and one of the rarest animals that we care for here at the zoo, so we’re absolutely delighted a new foal has been born – he’ll help to boost global numbersof this little-known species," said Mike Jordan, Chester Zoo's animal and plant director.
“With numbers havingdeclined so rapidlyin the wild, and the species now teetering on the edge of existence in Iran, it’s sadly very possible that onagers could become extinct in the wild within our lifetime.
"That’s why we’re part of an international conservation breeding programme, to ensure there’s a viable safety-net population of onager in zoos.
"In time, Jasper will go on to contribute to these efforts, helping to safeguard this charismatic species and preserve options for their conservation into the future."
Numerous species of animals can be seen at Chester Zoo, which is known for its cutting-edge exhibitions and conservation initiatives.
Earlier this year, Chester Zoogot the go-ahead to build safari lodges overlooking giraffes on an African-style savannah.
Images courtesy of Chester Zoo
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