February 25, 2022: Rarely seen in zoos, an aardvark being born for the first time in Chester Zoo overwhelms zookeepers.
For the first time since being inaugurated 90 years ago, Chester Zoo in the United Kingdom witnessed the birth of an aardvark. The zoo was ecstatic to notice this magnificent being of nature, as they tweeted out saying that they were over the moon.
“We’re over the moon to reveal that our new aardvark calf Dobby is a baby girl,” Chester zoo tweeted. The aardvark was born on January 4, 2022, but its gender was revealed to the public only a few days ago. The zoo named the calf ‘Dobby’, as its wrinkled and hairless skin, combined with its peculiar elongated ears reminded them of the Harry Potter character with the same name.
“This is the very first aardvark to be born at the zoo and so it’s a momentous landmark for us and a real cause for celebration. We’re overjoyed. As soon as we spotted the new baby next to mum we noticed its uncanny resemblance to the Harry Potter character, Dobby, and so that’s the calf’s nickname for the time being!” said Dave White, team manager at the zoo.
Aardvarks are ant and termite eaters who are native to sub-Saharan Africa. They use their long ‘pig-like’ snout to sniff out food. They also have powerful claws, that they can use to tear up termite mounds or dig a hole to sleep in. They are mainly nocturnal animals, and it's known to travel 10-30 kilometres at night.
They are rarely seen in zoos, and this is further proven by the fact that there are reportedly only 66 aardvarks in zoos across Europe. Their population was thought to be on the decline. This can mainly be attributed to humans, as their natural habitat is being uprooted by us. Not only that, but aardvarks are also hunted in some places for their meat. However, researchers have recently suggested that they have managed to maintain their numbers due to their species being spread out across the African continent, and their decline in population is not of concern anymore.