England: 4 horses of an endangered species were born in a zoo

A zoo has celebrated the birth of four new foals of endangered horses.

Marwell Zoo, near Winchester, has “delighted” to welcome new arrivals to its endangered herd of Przewalski’s horses.

All four are female and are said to be “doing well” with two born in May and two in June.

Przewalski’s horses, native to China and Mongolia, are the last surviving subspecies of truly wild horses in the world and have been extinct in the wild for nearly 40 years, the zoo said.

Marwell Zoo keeper Erin Luter said: “All the foals are doing well and can often be seen lying or sunbathing in the valley field near the rest of the herd.

“The first foal was born to the mother, Lena, on May 3. She is called Xaela which means “wild” in Mongolian.

“The second foal was born to his mother, Tsetseg, on May 11 and is named Sarah. It was named after a mountain in Mongolia.”

The two smaller foals were born just a day apart with Bilüü arriving at her mother Tuya on June 12th and Ereen born to Speranza on June 13th.
Their names are both cities in Mongolia.

Ms Luter added: “These horses, previously listed as extinct in the wild, are an example of how zoo breeding programs can help restore endangered species around the world.”

The animals became extinct in the wild between 1969 and 2008 due to hunting, cultural and political changes, climate change and military activities.

Current estimates indicate that there are 178 mature Przewalski’s horses living in the wild.