Watch who's barely a month old but doing well at Durrell!

Friday 19 February 2016

The first healthy baby bear to be born at Durrell in 20 years might not have its eyes open yet but it's starting to make some noise!

The cub, was born on 3 January, to first-time mum Bahia, a five-year-old Andean bear who has got her little one all to herself for the next few months until it makes its first public appearance.

As you can see here in the den mum and baby are both doing well and the little cub is able to lift its head and make little bear sounds. Keepers won't know the sex of the baby bear until they can get a good look at it, which they say they might not be able to do for another couple of months when Bahia allows it to leave the den.

Durrell Mammal Keeper Leila Boyd said: "Bahia and her cub are doing really well. The cub is just over a month old now and has grown a lot! In the coming weeks we will probably see the cub develop a lot more and it is likely to open its eyes at around 8 weeks of age.

"Bahia is a very gentle and attentive mother, she only leaves the cubbing den for a few minutes at a time to stretch her legs and have a bite to eat. Cub is feeding very well and looks strong, wriggling around all the time and being very vocal to let mum know when it is feeding time. It is likely to be around April time that Bahia will bring her cub outside for the first time and we are all very excited."

Andean bears are also known as Spectacled bears and are the only bear species native to South America. They are listed as vulnerable in the wild.

Hope it will venture outside in May.