A slow loris at the Bangladesh Wildlife Service Foundation in Sreemangal, Moulvibazar, has given birth. The slow loris kept at the foundation gave birth on Monday morning (22 June), and the baby has been feeding on its mother's milk since birth.

Sajal Deb, director of the Bangladesh Wildlife Service Foundation, said the mother slow loris had been there for many years and had given birth three times before. "We released all the babies. We will release this one too when it is grown. The slow loris has had four babies in the past six years. The newborn and the mother are both healthy," he said.

He said the slow loris is listed as endangered on the red list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the international conservation body.

Dr Monirul H Khan, professor in the zoology department at Jahangirnagar University and a wildlife expert, said the slow loris is nocturnal. Its scientific name is Nycticebus coucang. In deep green forests, from the top branches of tall trees, it feeds on young leaves, tree gum and sap, small insects, small birds and the eggs of various animals. It usually has one baby a year.

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