American Zoo Announces Birth of Rare Kangaroo!

A tree kangaroo joey peeking out of its mother's pouch is the first of its kind to be born at the Bronx Zoo since 2008, according to zoo officials. The birth of the joey, a species of tree kangaroo, is described as "an amazing event" at the Bronx Zoo and a unique opportunity for people to observe one of nature's most remarkable evolutionary adaptations, said Jim Breheny, the zoo director, in a recent statement. The native habitat of the Matschie's tree kangaroo is Papua New Guinea, and it is classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. This tree-dwelling marsupial lives in mountainous rainforests and is much smaller than the famous Australian red kangaroo. An adult male Matschie's tree kangaroo weighs between 9 and 11 kilograms. Zoo officials noted that the size of the joey at birth was comparable to a human fingernail and that the tiny baby crawls towards its mother's fur to enter her pouch, emerging after about seven months. Breheny added, “At this stage of development, the joey spends a lot of time in its mother’s pouch and only its head is visible. As it grows, it will begin to explore its environment and spend short periods outside the pouch.” Conservation activists believe that fewer than 2,500 Matschie's tree kangaroos still live in the wild, and they are threatened by habitat destruction, hunting, and other human activities.