Baby Zebra Is A Lowry Park Zoo First

TAMPA, FL — Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo is celebrating the births of two zebras in two months, but the latest arrival is one for the facility’s record books.

On Jan. 15, one of the zoo’s Hartmann’s mountain zebras gave birth to her very first foal. That baby was the first of its kind born at the zoo. The second new arrival is a female Grevy’s zebra foal that was born in late November.

“We are delighted with this successful birth,” said Dr. Larry Killmar, the zoo’s senior vice president, director and chief zoological officer. “With this foal, the Zoo has now contributed to the managed population of both zebra species in our conservation programs.”

The zoo is now home to three Hartmann’s mountain zebras – mare Roxie, sire Rex and the newborn girl, who has yet to be named. Both mother and baby joined Rex on exhibit a few days after the birth and were reunited with a bachelor herd of giraffes they share their habitat with.

Hartmann’s mountain zebras are native to southern Africa. The species is listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature with an estimated 9,000 mature adults in the population.

Lowry Park Zoo is a participant in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums Equid Taxon Advisory Group, which is designed to support conservation of select wildlife species at risk of extinction. The group includes the three main species of zebra: Grevy’s, mountain and plains.

To find out more about the zoo, its animals or visiting, visit it online.

Photo by Dave Parkinson of Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo