A baby Bactrian camel was born on April 29 at Toronto Zoo! After just two hours, with some encouragement from his mother Suria, the little calf stood on his own.
This camel calf is the third offspring of mother Suria and father Zip. His coloring is similar to his father’s, with a very white-blond coat.
Watch a video of the adorable baby camel and his mama here:
Learn more at the Toronto Zoo website.
Imara, a Masai giraffe calf, was born on February 22, 2026 at Toronto Zoo. Photo credit: Toronto Zoo.
In February, the Toronto Zoo in Canada welcomed a baby who is most likely taller than you! Standing at 1.95 m (6 ft. 4 in.) a half hour after being born, the newborn Masai giraffe calf was a very happy (and very tall) addition to the zoo.
Like all giraffes, the female calf, named Imara, had a very long drop to the ground when she was born–about 2 m (6 ft.)! Watch a video of her birth here:
Imari and her mom, Mstari, are doing well and are being supervised by zoo staff.
According to Dolf DeJong, CEO, Your Toronto Zoo, “We announced Mstari’s pregnancy on Mother’s Day last year and after a 15-month pregnancy we are thrilled to have a healthy calf in our care, raising the profile of endangered Masai giraffes and inspiring our community to learn more and stand with us as Guardians of Wild.”
Both Imara and her mother, Mstari, are doing well. Photo credit: Toronto Zoo.
Fewer than 35,000 Masai giraffes survive in the wild, having experienced more than a 50% decline in the past 30 years. They are considered endangered by the IUCN, threatened by illegal hunting and habitat loss.
Toronto Zoo supports conservation efforts of Masai giraffes through its breeding programs and by supporting Wild Nature Institute’s Masai Giraffe Project. Learn more at Toronto Zoo’s website.
For more information about giraffes, see our article, Giraffe.
National Panda Day takes place every year on March 16. Photo by Foreverhappy-Mee / iStock.com.
In honor of National Panda Day, celebrated every year on March 16, here are five cool facts about giant pandas!
One of the interesting evolutionary traits of the giant panda is their protruding wrist bone that acts like a thumb. This helps the pandas hold bamboo while they munch on it.
Giant pandas use their protruding wrist bones to help them grasp bamboo while they eat. Photo by Foreverhappy-Mee / iStock.com.
Due to the low nutritional value of bamboo, pandas need to eat 10-20 kg (20-40 lb.) of bamboo a day. They spend up to 16 hours of the day eating!
Giant pandas need to eat 10-20 kg (20-40 lb.) of bamboo every day! Photo by mrbfaust / iStock.com.
The most common sound a panda bear makes is a bleating sound, similar to that of a goat or sheep. But they can make a variety of sounds, including honks, huffs, barks, squeaks, and growls.
Researchers at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China observed panda cubs climbing trees. They found the most effective climbers used their heads to help hug and grip the tree trunk as they shinnied up.
Pandas use their heads to help them climb trees. Photo by Hung_Chung_Chih / iStock.com.
Pandas mark their territories with scents. They have scent glands on their rumps which they rub on trees, rocks and the ground. They also scent mark with urine. Sometimes male pandas do handstands so they can leave their pee high up on a tree trunk!
Hope you enjoyed our roundup of fun facts about giant pandas! To learn more, read our article, Giant Panda.
African wild dogs vote with their sneezes. Photo by paulafrench / iStock.com.
African wild dogs must use teamwork to bring down prey like wild buffaloes or impalas. So how do they decide as a group that they want to hunt?
One study concludes that African wild dogs sneeze as a way to cast their vote to hunt. If there are enough sneezes, then the pack sets off on the chase.
Watch PBS’s Nature video showing African wild dogs sneezing to vote:
To learn more about African wild dogs, see our animal fact article: African Wild Dog.
Marsh rabbits, like this one, are excellent swimmers. Though they can hop, they often walk or swim while navigating through their wetland habitat. Photo by Everglades NPS from Homestead, Florida, United States, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
You probably know that rabbits are great at hopping. But did you know that some wild rabbits are exceptional swimmers as well?
There are certain species of wild rabbit, including marsh rabbits and swamp rabbits, that live in wetland habitats. To evade predators, they can hop, walk, and swim to safety!
Watch a video from PBS’s Nature, which shows swamp rabbits at home in the water:
For more information about rabbits, see our Rabbit Facts page. Think you know a lot about rabbits already? Take our Rabbit Quiz!
The Amur leopard, a subspecies of leopard, is one of the most endangered cats in the world. It lives in Russia and China where winters can be very cold and harsh.
Watch a clip from BBC’s Planet Earth of a mother Amur leopard and her cub trying to find food:
To learn more about Amur leopards, see our article: Leopard.
In this clip from the BBC, watch as a polar bear cub gets startled when a seal pops up from under the ice:
(or watch the video on YouTube)
To learn more about polar bears, see our article, Polar Bear.
A baby Linne’s two-toed sloth was born at Roger Williams Park Zoo in Rhode Island on September 8. Photo credit: Roger Williams Park Zoo.
The Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence, RI welcomed a baby Linne’s two-toed sloth, named Scout, on September 8.
“Baby Scout and mom Fiona are both doing great,” the zoo reported in a social media post. “Fiona is an excellent momma, and they are bonding beautifully.”
Baby Scout and mother Fiona enjoy a pumpkin and a cuddle. Photo credit: Roger Williams Park Zoo.
Visitors to the Roger Williams Park Zoo can find Scout and Fiona hanging out in the zoo’s rainforest habitat.
Watch a video of Scout and Fiona nibbling a treat:
In the wild, sloths live the rainforests of Central and South America. They spend most of their time hanging upside down from the tree canopy and only come down to the ground to poop.
Linne’s two-toed sloths are part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan, which aims to maintain a healthy and genetically diverse population of sloths worldwide.
The birth of Scout is a wonderful step forward for the program.
To learn more about Scout, Fiona, and other Linne’s sloths, visit the Roger Williams Park Zoo website.
For more sloth facts, see our article: Brown-throated Three-toed Sloth.
In this video clip from BBC’s Planet Earth III, a great white shark has a group of fur seals cornered.
Game over for the fur seals, right? Not so fast! Watch what happens when a bunch of fur seals decide they don’t want to become dinner for a great white shark:
To learn more about great white sharks, see our article, Great White Shark.