Edmonton Valley Zoo welcomes endangered Grevy’s zebra foal

“It’s a boy,” the Edmonton Valley Zoo announced the arrival of the healthy baby zebra on Facebook, Tuesday.

Born to “proud parents” Zuri and Cody, the Grevy’s zebra foal was born on Sunday at around 8:45 p.m., said a post to the Edmonton Valley Zoo’s Facebook page. According to zoo officials the baby, who joins big sister Maizy, born in 2021, was up and walking around within 20 minutes of his birth.

“The birth is extremely important, as the Grevy’s zebra is listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with about 2,500 adults in the wild,” read the announcement. “We are proud to play an active role in the Grevy’s zebra Species Survival Plan (SSP), a co-ordinated breeding program to ensure genetic diversity of endangered species.”

In a statement provided by the zoo animal care team, both Maize and the new foal will likely be moved to different facilities on the recommendations of the SPP, which “creates breeding and transfer plans ensuring genetic diversity through specialized population management.”

The baby boy is described as “quite tall” and had a longer-than-expected gestation period of 410 days. Grevy’s zebra pregnancies are typically an estimated 390 days.

“He is showing his adventurous personality and has been spending the day exploring the yard and learning how to use his long legs,” said the announcement.

Zookeepers report a higher number of visitors viewing the zebras since the birth of the yet-to-be named foal on Sunday. Plans are being made to run a contest to name the new arrival and an announcement will be made in the coming days.