Rare baby tapir born at Chester Zoo named following public poll
More than 30,000 animal lovers had their say.
A rare Malayan tapir born at Chester Zoo has been named following a public vote.
The calf, born on July 18 and unveiled by the zoo earlier this week, has been given the name Rony.
More than 30,000 people voted in the poll which asked animal lovers to choose between the names Rony and Thom, with around two thirds plumping for the former.
Rony was born to parents Margery, aged seven, and Betong, aged six, becoming the second Malayan tapir ever born at the zoo.
Team manager Sarah Roffe said at the time: “The precious calf is another big boost for the international breeding programme, which is working to ensure the already endangered species do not become extinct.
“In the wild, the Malayan tapir population has crashed in recent times, largely due to the wide-spread conversion of their forest habitat to palm oil plantations.”
Only 2,500 tapirs are estimated to remain in the wild across Malaysia, Sumatra, Thailand and Burma with half the global population lost over the last 40 years.
