MIAMI – With a maximum of only a few hundred left in the wild, the addax is one of the most critically endangered animals in the world, and on Monday, Zoo Miami welcomed the creature into their sanctuary.
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The critically endangered addax antelope can be found throughout the Sahara desert in North Africa, but they can now be found in a small reserve in Niger.
One of their main threats is poaching and habitat destruction due to petroleum exploration.
This is number 72 for the addaxes born at Zoo Miami, and its most recent male calf weighed just over 14 pounds at birth after a pregnancy of approximately eight and a half months.
The neonatal examination showed the newborn to be in good health and it has since been introduced back to the herd on exhibit where its mother is taking excellent care of it.
The careful breeding of addax populations under human care serves as an insurance policy against a very dire situation in the wild where many experts believe that they are soon headed for extinction.
Thanks to the closely managed herds in zoos like Zoo Miami, this critically endangered species has a much better chance for survival for future generations.