Chester Zoo celebrates birth of rare mountain bongo

A female mountain bongo, which is one of the rarest large mammals in Africa, has been birthed at Chester Zoo.

The mountain bongo is one of the largest forest-dwelling antelopes. It is notable for its vibrant coat of reddish-brown colour, with thin vertical white stripes serving to help it camouflage itself in the forest environment. With only 50 thought to be still living in the wild, it is a critically endangered species. The new arrival is only the second to be born at Chester Zoo over the past 15 years.

The director of plants and animals at the zoo, Mike Jordan, expressed how tragic it was that the subspecies had dwindled to such a small population and said the arrival of Navari, the new calf, was extremely precious.

Chester Zoo’s general manager for mammals, Dr Nick Davis, supervises a programme for conservation breeding alongside agencies in Kenya, the wider European zoo community, and UK academics. He said:

“We’ve already been involved in a number of breakthrough discoveries, such as finding them living in Uganda for the first time. This has laid a foundation for us to integrate conservation efforts by zoos with those in the wild—offering better hope for the future survival of these incredible animals.”

Chester Zoo is one of the many leading attractions that motivates people to study at the University of Chester. If you’re in need of off-campus accommodation during your studies at Chester, you can find shared student housing in Chester’s popular student areas, such as the Garden Quarter and Hoole.