By Blake Haas
BLOOMINGTON – Zoogoers in Bloomington now have the chance to see new born pups that were once endangered.
The Miller Park Zoo announced Thursday that three Red Wolves were born on Monday. Miller Park Zoo Superintendent, Jay Tetzloff, said Zoogoers can watch the new pups learn from their parents.
“They (the Red Wolves) are a family group,” Tetzloff added. “Mom and dad are the alphas (so) they are in charge. This breeding program likes to keep one-year-olds in the pack to see how they will learn from their mom and dad so in this case last years kids were all male, and so they get a chance to learn what dad does in the setting of being the father and what he does for the pack.”
This is the second litter of Red Wolves at the Miller Park Zoo as four male pups from last year are still at the Zoo. Since the four male pups from last year are still at the Zoo, the Zoo is now home to nine Red Wolves. Tetzloff said even though the Red Wolves exhibit has nine Red Wolves in it, there is still plenty of room to roam around.
“(You can see them) especially in the morning,” Tetzloff said. “We have nine Wolves in there now. We have mom and dad and four young boys that were born here (at the Miller Park Zoo) last year and then the three that were born this year. It’s fun to see how the one-year-old kind of interact with the few months old, and how they interact and move around the exhibit.”
New born pups are not the only change Miller Park Zoogoers can expect to see this summer. Tetzloff added that Zoogoers will see new animals and new lighting.
“We have had good luck with breeding this year,” Tetzloff said. “We have (North American) River otters, Wallaby babies, so we have had a pretty good year for breeding this year. We have done some modifications to our sky lighting and new mesh so you can see in a little bit better. So it’s been a busy but good year so far.”
The Miller Park Zoo is open everyday from 9:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.
Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].
