A new foal has joined the zebra herd at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Safari Park in Sreepur, Gazipur, raising the number of zebras in the park from 25 to 26.

Assistant Conservator of Forests Rafiqul Islam, the park's officer-in-charge, confirmed the birth on the afternoon of Thursday 27 April.

He said the mother had been staying in a relatively cool spot inside the forest for the past few weeks, and the foal is thought to have been born in the middle of this month. Other members of the herd guarded and protected the foal, and in the meantime it came to the authorities' notice. The birth was kept quiet for safety reasons.

According to park sources, the zebras were brought from South Africa in several batches since 2013 through the animal importer Falcon Traders. After quarantine they were released into the park's African safari enclosure, which also holds several other African animals.

Anisur Rahman, the park's wildlife supervisor, said zebra foals suckle for seven to eight months. Zebras like to roam in herds, and other members protect new arrivals. A female zebra's pregnancy lasts 12 to 13 months. In the wild they live 20 years, and there are records of them living up to 40 years in captivity.

He said the mother's diet has been changed for nutrition, with more carrots, maize and bran given regularly, and gram alongside grass. Both the foal and its mother are healthy.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.